THE FIGHT OF FAITH
One of Abraham Lincoln’s favorite stories was about one of his neighbors who had a little dog that could whip all the big dogs. When someone asked the man how his little dog could whip all the big dogs, he said, “Your big dog is not ready to fight until the fight is half over. My little dog stays mad!” Don’t wait any longer before you use your faith to lay hold of what belongs to you. Right now, set goals of prayer, faith, and blessing for your life and “stay mad.” Keep your faith focused all the time. Refuse to give one inch to the devil, defeat, or discouragement.
Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses. 1 Timothy 6:12
Are you ready to fight? The faith fight is the only fight believers are called to fight. We are not called to fight other people. We really are not called to fight the devil, because he is a defeated foe. Jesus defeated him 2,000 years ago. One of Satan’s strategies is to entice the believer out of the arena of faith and into the arena of feelings, sight, or circumstances. You must stay in the arena of faith, because that is where the victory is won.
Another strategy of the devil is discouragement. During the Korean War, a company of American soldiers took a particular hill in Korea 13 times and lost it every time. However, on the fourteenth attempt, they took the hill and kept it. You may experience setbacks and delays in your life, but your faith fight is a good fight, because you win!
NEVER RUN AT YOUR GIANT WITH YOUR MOUTH SHUT
Don’t let the devil shut your mouth. When the devil talks trash to you, talk it right back to him. He’ll try to intimidate you, just like Goliath talked to David. Do you know what David did? He started talking back to Goliath. He said, “I’m going to kill you, cut your head off, hang it in my tent, and feed your body to the birds!” All of us have giants or things that seem bigger than we are. That’s why everyone needs at least one Goliath head hanging in their tent. David activated the covenant with his confession and actions. You can do the same thing. Never run at your giant with your mouth shut.
THE GOOD FIGHT OF FAITH
There is a fight to faith — a good fight and winning fight. The good faith fight requires a good profession or confession. You must say what you believe to lay hold or possess your victory. Sometimes it is much easier to say how you feel or how things look than to say what you believe.
If you are in a faith fight now, the devil is going to make sure it’s not easy for you. He’s going to try to stop it. He will put roadblocks, mountains, difficulties, and hindrances everywhere he can and tell you that God is not faithful and the Word doesn’t work. You’ve got to say, “I am fighting the good fight of faith. I’ve got a good confession, and I’m going to enjoy the fight.”
Paul said in 2 Corinthians 4:13, “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak.” Your faith will never rise above your confession. E.W. Kenyon said, “Confession builds the road over which faith carries its mighty cargo.’’
If your faith is going to get something to your house, how would it get there? You will have to build a road or street there. Your confession of faith should be strong enough for some eighteen-wheelers to carry heaven’s cargo to your address.
Some years ago, the State of Louisiana completed I-49 from the southern part of the state to the northern part. Even with modern technology and equipment, it took 20 years from start to finish. It takes time to build a super-highway. Sometimes there may be what seems like a delay, but how many years did you spend confessing a footpath? Confession always precedes possession. So, if you are expecting some major traffic to come to your house, start building the road right now. Remember, confession is the road over which faith carries its mighty cargo.
Although confession builds the road, it will never take the place of prayer. Your confession is born out of rich fellowship with the Father God. I don’t mean a superficial relationship, but a heart relationship with the Father, where your spirit is in fellowship with the Lord Jesus. Your confession is born out of that fellowship. Your words will either complete your faith, or they will defeat your faith. You must boldly confess your redemption in Christ and who you are in Him.
Thank you for your partnership with us. Together we are taking this life-changing message of faith to believers around the world. This month, we would like to offer you our books, The Spirit of Faith and Never Run at Your Giant with Your Mouth Shut. For your offering of $25 or more we will ship these books to you. We have also enclosed a card with scriptures on having faith in God and in His ability - failure is not an option! Thank you once again for your faithful partnership. We declare, “And my God will liberally supply (fill to the full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus,” Philippians 4:19.
In Christ,
Mark and Trina Hankins