Have you ever been in a spiritual battle that just seemed to drag on and never end? One that made you so weary, you didn't know how much longer you could take it? I know I have, and it's so difficult. You're trying so hard, and yet it feels like you're getting nowhere and the end doesn't seem to be in sight. It's in those defining moments that battles are often either directed toward victory or defeat.
In James 1:2-4 Paul says, "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete lacking in nothing."
In this verse, 'steadfastness' is translated as "cheerful (or hopeful) endurance"
When I think of steadfastness, I typically think of just gritting my teeth and fighting to keep my thoughts in line with the Word of God amidst attacks and doubts. I don't usually find myself in a good mood when facing trials - let alone find joy in them. I've actually often found myself afraid. Afraid that with one wrong thought, I would be swept away into a revolving storm of doubt and fear. The opportunity to remain steadfast did not bring me joy, but rather made me afraid because I was scared I would fail under the pressure.
And maybe that's a result of not practicing a steadfast mind. We allow fear in and then we become so weary because we're not only fighting to remain steadfast in our faith, but we're also fighting fear and doubt in the midst of those trials.
What if the weariness we experience comes not always just because we are facing trials, but sometimes, because we are being drained by the constant fear we feel during those trials? As in, it's not always just the trial itself that's taking so much out of us, but the fear we've gotten to know so well. How can we cheerfully endure when we're so preoccupied with fear? Fear is a stopper, a delayer of what's good. When we let fear in, we let it distract us from our end goal and sometimes, we even let it stop us from pursuing those things completely. If the enemy can make you afraid, he can cause you to delay or even stop doing the work God has called you to do. I don't know about you, but I don't want to let the enemy derail what God has called me to do. I want to serve faithfully in all the areas He calls, not just the ones that come without fear; I don't want to let the enemy stop me from a single moment of it. What do we do though? How do we stop letting doubts overpower us when the fear seems so reasonable?
1 Peter 5:9 gives us a good framework: "Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world." (emphasis mine).
Notice that God doesn't say, "Resist him, firm in what you feel..." or "Resist him, when it makes sense to you..." No, He says, "Resist him, firm in your faith..." If we are going to stand up against the lies of the enemy and the fear he tries to throw in our faces every day, we have to have faith - real, gritty faith that says, "I will not turn from the truth, no matter how difficult it is for me to understand or see right now." And then we need to be okay if we don't feel it. I thought that if I was feeling fear then I was afraid, but I think there can be a difference between feeling and being. You don't always get a choice about what you are feeling, but you do get a choice about who/what you will allow yourself to be. I can feel anxious but not allow myself to be anxious; I don't have to surrender myself to anxiety. I can feel fear but not be afraid; I don't have to surrender to an identity defined in fear. I get that it doesn't feel like you can separate feeling from being when you are in the throes of anxiety or fear, but it's in those moments especially that we have to hunker down, know what we believe, and not surrender to the fear we are feeling. Repeat Truth to yourself that combats the lie the enemy is wanting you to believe and do not surrender to something that is not from God.
In 2 Timothy 1:7 Paul tells Timothy, "...for God gave us a spirit not of fear, but of power, love, and self-control." I've seen "self-control" also translated as "a sound mind" in other Bible translations and so I looked at the Greek word used to get a better understanding, and it turns out it can be translated as both. So, my thought is that they must be related to each other. We can have a sound mind through self-control, and we can have self-control by having a sound mind. They are inter-connected.
As I have thought back on the times when I've needed a steadfast mind, I recognize that it required self-control. It requires you to force your mind to think in a way that it is not always inclined to do. It requires you to control your thoughts so that they don't begin to control you. The same is true for self-control though. If you do not have a mind steadfast to truth, you won't know how to control yourself in a way that is pleasing to God.
Having a steadfast mind means trusting God more than you trust yourself. Because feelings and thoughts that oppose God's word likely will come, and the only way to combat them is to trust His Word more than you trust yourself and your own reasoning.
Romans 12:12 "Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer." We have an unwavering hope in Jesus, His love for us, and His return and so that is the reason we can be joyful and patient amidst our tribulations - because of Him and His surety and what He is bringing to completion in us. We are not wasting patience or putting ourselves through the pain of steadfastness for no purpose; we have an eternal hope, an eternal calling, and an eternal purpose that are worth the requirements that steadfastness demands in this life. "You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand" (James 5:8). I love the call to establish our hearts in this verse, because I think that is a key to establishing our minds as well. Know in your heart what the purpose of your life is in Jesus and let that be a guide work for the thoughts of your mind to be in-line with the mind of Christ which you have been given (1 Corinthians 2:16). When our hearts are steadfastly set on the truth, our minds will follow.
If I'm honest, sometimes the only thing you can do in a moment when you are so weary of the fight, is to just keep going. Don't put pressure on yourself of "how", just do whatever you need to do to not give up. Keep praying, keep seeking the help of God, and you will see Him show up for you. Don't give in to the lie that He won't get you out or help you through because He will. The enemy wants you to make you tired so that you'll quit. In those moments, it's okay to just hold on; you don't have to have this huge overarching victory, you just need to resist his lies and then once you are in a better position, you can fight more; don't forget that resisting the enemy is a form of fighting. If you were to ask me how I've persevered through all the trials in my life, all I could tell you is that the only thing I've done is not give up - the grace of God is what carried me the rest of the way. There were moments where I felt like I couldn't fight at all; I was so tired, so beaten down and confused. But I refused to give up. I'm so grateful that in that time, I had an army of believers rallying around me in prayer, lifting me up to God constantly, when I couldn't seem to do so myself (surround yourself with people who will fight for you, even when you can't fight for yourself). And after a while I witnessed God show up in miraculous ways, showing me how to fight, giving me victory over the things that had weighed me down for so long. I didn't have to have it all together at all times. He sustained me when I couldn't fight and then gave me the victory when I could.
Are we missing out on something because we don't endure? Because we're not sitting in a cheerful patience or expectance of what God is going to do based on His promises? Verse 4 says, "And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete lacking in nothing." Let's be steadfast to fight against the lies and attacks of the enemy and remain true to what God has told us. Let us not fall prey to doubt and fear but stand strong in our Savior and His love for us. He will not fail. And let's allow steadfastness to have its full effect in us, perfecting and completing us as God has designed it.
**I also think steadfastness begins before the fight ever starts. If you want to remain steadfast in battle, then you need to build up the foundation of steadfastness in your life. We need to be in the Word, communing with God before the battle ever begins so that when it does come, we are prepared to hold fast. We don't want to be caught off guard trying to fight a battle when we never even prepared for in the first place.**
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