The Fight For Your Spiritual Life

By Cindi Myers

Who is God? What is the Holy Spirit? Angels, aren't they the curly haired baby's on cards? Seriously are demons real? Does Satan wear red, have horns, carry a pitch fork and throw parties in Hell? This book will answer these questions while teaching the truth about Spiritual Warfare.

• Language: English
• Publisher: CrossLink Publishing
• Release date: Jul 27, 2018
• ISBN: 9781386210771

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The Fight for Your Spiritual Life

TOOLS TO HELP EVERY BELIEVER WIN THE SPIRITUAL BATTLE IN THEIR LIVES

Cindi Myers

New Harbor Press

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO

Copyright © 2018 by Cindi Myers.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed Attention: Permissions Coordinator, at the address below.

Myers/New HarborPress

13395 Voyager Pkwy, Ste 130

Colorado Springs, CO 80921

www.newharborpress.com

Ordering Information:

Quantity sales. Special discounts are available on quantity purchases by corporations, associations, and others. For details, contact the Special Sales Department at the address above.

The Fight for Your Spiritual Life / Cindi Myers. -- 1st ed.

Contents

Introduction/Laying the Foundation

Introduction

What is Spiritual Warfare?

What does Spiritual Warfare have to do with me?

Characters of Spiritual Warfare

The Elements of Spiritual Warfare

The Trinity and Spiritual Warfare

The Trinity—What is that?1

The Person of God

What Role Does God Play in Spiritual Warfare?

Who is God?

His many names say it all

The person of Jesus

What role does Jesus play in Spiritual Warfare?

Why trust Jesus?

His Name Says it All

The Holy Spirit

The Role of the Holy Spirit in Spiritual Warfare

Who is the Holy Spirit?

The Name says it All

Listening to the Holy Spirit can save your life

Four Facts about the speaking of the Holy Spirit

Satan and his Evil Strategies

Introduction

Where did Satan come from?

What is Satan like?

His Name says it all

Lies, the Truth and what the Bible says

Satan’s plans

Satan’s evil tactics and strategies

What should your attitude about Satan be?

Angels, Angels and more Angels…..

Introduction

What are angels and where do they come from?

How angels differ from humans

The different types of angels

Form and Ranks

Archangels

Seraphim

Cherubim

What do angels really do?

What is the role of angels in Spiritual Warfare?

Come on, are demons really real?

Where did fallen angels come from?

Characteristics of demons

So what do demons do?

Do demons have power over Christians?

Examples of how demons try to mess with believers

What is the role of demons in Spiritual Warfare?

Demonic Possession

Occultic Practices

Fleeing is best

Dealing with spiritual warfare in your life?

Effective Tools for Spiritual Warfare

The Name of Jesus: The Authority behind the Name

Prayer

Advantages of Prayer

Satan’s Lies

Active Prayer Life

Different types of Prayer

Praise

The Bible and Praise

Forms of Praise

Word of God

Facts about the Bible

Power Tool for Battle

Now What?

Let’s Review

What do you do with this information?

Battle Prayers

Common Scenarios

Common Scenario: Doubt about Salvation

Common Scenario: Doubt about Being Loved

Common Scenario: Fear

Common Scenario: Anger and Rage

Common Scenarios: Perfection

Common Scenarios: Unforgiveness

Personal Stories

Middle School Spiritual Battle

Midnight Visitor

Cackling laughter three stories up (Chloe’s story)

The battle gets personal (Krystal’s Story)

The Battle over Ghost Hunters

Midnight Rage

The Television Visitor

• Chapter 1 •

Introduction/Laying the Foundation

Introduction

When people hear the words spiritual warfare there is usually a mixed response. Some people have no clue what you mean, while others are fully aware of the battle that Satan is waging against God and His followers. Some people respond with feelings of fear, while others are fascinated, yet others are completely uninterested.

There are different reasons for the mixed responses. Some people say they only believe in things that they can experience through their senses, things that they can touch, smell, taste, hear and see. People who live by this philosophy often struggle with believing in the spirit world. Things like God, angels, demons, and Satan, which are normally not visible, make them uncomfortable, so they choose to believe that they don’t exist.

Many other people believe in and embrace the spirit world, but they aren’t always in agreement about what it is made up of. Many religions have different beliefs regarding the spirit world, which affects the belief system of those who embrace the non-visible world. Some people focus only on one aspect of it, such as angels or demons.

The truth is, no matter what a person believes, God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, angels, demons and Satan do exist. The choice to deny them is yours, but your choice will not change the truth.

What is Spiritual Warfare?

Spiritual warfare is the ongoing attack by Satan towards God and the people He loves. God’s existence is different from ours; we live in a human body, on planet Earth, and are bound by time. God is a spirit, who has the ability to be everywhere at the same time (officially we call this being ‘omnipresent’) and who is not bound by the limitations of time nor by the physical world. God lives in heaven and is sovereign over all of creation, mankind, heaven, hell and the entire spirit world. ‘Sovereign’ is one of those words that many people don’t understand, but all it means is that God is in control of everything.

To help you grasp the enormity of the attack that Satan is waging on God, you need to understand that Satan hates God. Satan doesn’t just dislike God, nor does he ‘kind of’ hate God. He truly, completely and passionately hates God and all things that have to do with God. This is where spiritual warfare comes from: out of the rage and hate that Satan lashes out at all things related to God. Simply put, spiritual warfare is the battle that Satan started the day he was kicked out of heaven. His target is God, and all those who God loves.

What does Spiritual Warfare have to do with me?

We have established that spiritual warfare is a battle that Satan is waging against God, so you’re probably wondering how it affects you. To find out, let’s go back to the beginning and see how mankind came about.

Way back in Genesis, when God created Adam and Eve, He chose to make them in His image. Because we are the descendants of Adam and Eve, we too are made in the image of God. This doesn’t mean that we have God’s brown eyes, or his straight nose. Instead, it means that we share similar attributes that God has. These attributes enable us to have relationships, make choices, set up plans, be creative, understand things, and use our emotions. We are eternal beings who have a body, soul and spirit. In other words, we are a mini portrait of God. But we are not God, nor will we become ‘gods’. God has many attributes that we don’t have, such as being omnipresent and omniscient.

With that understanding of where mankind began, let’s get back to spiritual warfare. Because we are made in the image of God, we are the crown of His creation. The Psalmist said,

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;What is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him? Yet You have made him a little lower than God, And You crown him with glory and majesty!"¹

We are deeply and completely loved by God. But remember, Satan hates God; therefore he hates what God loves. This raging hatred has driven Satan to be creative in the ways that he tries to attack God, and he has decided that one of the best ways to hurt God is to attack the one thing that He loves the most: humans. The result of Satan’s hatred and rage towards God puts all humans in the middle of the battle. That is why it is important for all believers to be aware and knowledgeable about spiritual warfare. This is not a situation where if you don’t believe that spiritual warfare is real it will disappear.

Everyone of us has a choice to make: either you’re on God’s side or you’re on Satan’s side. The cool thing is you get to select which team you want to be on.

When Satan was in heaven he caused a riot. He was crafty enough to convince some of the other angels that if they followed him, he could make them greater than or equal to God. The result of the riot was that all the angels in heaven had to make a choice, to either join Satan and his endeavors or to remain with God. One third of the angels joined Satan, while the other two thirds remained faithful to God.

We are faced with the same choice, we can either join God and His team or we can join Satan and become a member of his team. There is no straddling the line, you are either for God or against Him. The choice is completely yours, and out of His deep love for you, God will honor your choice.

But because God leaves the choice up to us, Satan does everything that he can to get us to pick his side. He makes his side look really good. Sometimes he makes us think that if we are on his side, we will have all the wealth we could want, or be as popular as we want. Satan knows what it would take to grab our attention. Sometimes he uses beauty, relationships, health, or promises that he can’t fulfill.

A big part of spiritual warfare is keeping humans from choosing to be on God’s side. But understand that if you choose to be on God’s side, Satan won’t just give up and leave you alone. Instead he will do everything he can to keep you from growing in your relationship with God. Make no mistake about it, this is a real battle: a battle that will have eternal consequences.

Characters of Spiritual Warfare

In the coming chapters we will look at the characters that are involved in spiritual warfare. We will explore the traits of each member of the Trinity, and look at their role in the battle. We’ll talk about how they help us in the battle, and how we can depend on their strength and knowledge when engaged in spiritual warfare. Next, we will look at who Satan really is, where he came from and the strategies that he uses to convince people to choose him over God. We’ll talk about some of the common lies that Satan tells us and we’ll explore the Bible’s response to his lies.

Our society is often fascinated with angels. Because of this fascination, many people have an incorrect concept of whom and what angels are. So in chapter seven we will explore the truth about angels. We’ll look at where they came from, what their job is, the different types of angels that are listed in the Bible, and the role they play in spiritual warfare.

Just as there are people obsessed with angels, so, too are there many people in society who are equally fascinated with demons. People often have one of two responses to demons; some people are fearful of them, while others love and adore them. In chapter eight we will investigate demons. We’ll look at where they come from, what they are like, and what our emotional response towards them should be. We’ll probe the role they play in the ongoing battle that Satan is waging towards God.

When we get to chapter nine we’ll examine practical ways to deal with spiritual warfare and discuss the weapons that God has given believers to help them in the battle. I’ll give easy to use examples that will aid believers in being successful in battle. We’ll wrap it all up in chapter ten, by looking at how this information should impact your life. I’ll give easy to understand examples of how to overcome spiritual warfare and how to grow in your relationship with God, and list different Scriptures that you can use in the battle. Finally, I’ll end the chapter with common scenarios that all believers can relate to, and a ‘battle plan’.

Our last chapter is different from the others. It is a collection of stories about spiritual warfare. In the stories the reader will see different types of spiritual battles and how the person in each scenario dealt with the situation.

The Elements of Spiritual Warfare

Each person on earth is unique and different in their own way, and because of our uniqueness, Satan and his followers need a variety of weapons. Not every weapon will work on every person. For some people excessive fear is their weakness, while others struggle with deep addictions, yet others are consumed with rage and anger. Some people will be tempted by the promise of beauty, fame, wealth, a specific type of job or the promise of a spouse or children.

Satan will use any tool that will keep you from growing in your relationship with God, or keep you as far from God as possible. If he can get you involved in a bad relationship or an obsession with having something specific, he can get you to focus on that instead of turning to God and focusing on your relationship with Him.

Some of the elements of spiritual warfare may include: rage, denial, fear, unbelief, anxiety, addictions, visibly seeing angels or demons, physical limitations (such as illness, blindness, or deafness), taking pleasure in doing evil activities, refusal to extend forgiveness, false doctrine or teachings that a person either believes in or spreads to others, the use of mediums, participation in séances, using Ouija boards and horoscopes, black magic, tarot cards, channeling and other types of occult activities. In other words, there is an unlimited supply of elements that Satan uses to try to win the battle.

If you are informed, prepared and on God’s side, Satan might win a few scrimmages against you but he will not will the battle.

Before we jump into the next chapter, let me encourage you by letting you in on a secret, I’ve read the last chapter of the ultimate book on spiritual warfare, and in the end God wins. There is no way that Satan comes out the winner.