As we remember the millions of American soldiers who have died, served, or are currently deployed all over the world, we Christians must also realize that we have been similarly deployed by our Commander-in-Chief, the Lord Jesus! Tragically, the majority of American Christians act as though there is no war going on. We act as if the Christian life is welfare, not warfare! Many of our troops are AWOL—absent without leave. We have retreated from the battlefront. We come to church, sit around the barracks, and polish our boots and brass. Why? We are a post-war generation like the generations following Joshua’s death. Both in society and in the Church, we have a generation who need to be “taught warfare” because they have little or no “previous battle experience.” As a result, we too have compromised with the people among whom we live, and have “served their gods” (Judges 3:1–6). It is time for us to prepare for war. We have a far greater enemy than any dictator or terrorist: Satan. He is the archenemy of our souls. And the only way we will turn the tide and win the battle is for us to regain the mentality of a soldier. We need to have a warfare mentality in how we view at least five areas: the world, our fellow man, our Savior, our Church, and our mission. We need to have warfare thinking, praying, giving, and going. We are living in the greatest and most challenging days of human history. It is time for those in the slumbering ecclesiastical giant called the Church to heed the call: “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you” (Ephesians 5:14). It is time to “fight the good fight of the faith” (1 Timothy 6:12).
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