The LORD Fights for You!

Grabbing the car door handle, my youngest son flung the bag of flour into the back seat with such force that a cloud of dust rose from it.

“Be careful with my grandflour!” I said jokingly.

My high school freshman’s early morning glare and eye roll told me he was not amused with my comment. As an assignment for his health class, my son needed to care for a bag of flour like a baby. He carried it around to his classes, carefully ensuring none of the precious contents spilled because any damage to the bag would cause a deduction of grade points. As assurance nothing would spill, he reinforced it with camouflage duct tape and a onesie I picked up from the thrift store.

It looked hideous.

“I’m so done with this!” he grumbled as he sat down in the passenger seat and slammed the door.

Caring for this bag of flour for ten days was tedious and exhausting for him. By the time the experiment was over, my little “grandflour” was disfigured and useless. No matter how many layers of duct tape you put on a bag of flour, it will still resemble a tattered, leaky, war-torn, lifeless lump of grain.

It reminded me of a time in my life when I was engaged in a spiritual battle so severe I thought I would never feel the love of Christ again. No matter how many layers of bandages covered my spiritual wounds, my sins leaked through my soul, spewing out toxic words and actions.

The daily heaviness, spiritual darkness, and depression that overshadowed me were not caused by someone else.

I fully and willingly brought it on myself. The start of something exciting and fun led me down a path of sin, full of inner turmoil, mental pain, and suffering. Looking back at that season, I realize a raging war in the heavenly realms battled for my mind, heart, and soul, and for a brief moment, the enemy was winning. Physically, I looked as put together as a busy mom of two children could look, and even engaged in Bible study and weekly church services. I went on with life as normal as possible.

Mentally, however, I looked disfigured and useless, much like that bag of flour my son carried around. No magic duct tape could fix my tattered and torn heart.

My flesh prevailed over my spirit.

I gave up on God, but God did not give up on me. He will not give up on you, either.

Unlike the bag of flour thrown in the back seat of a car and forgotten, the Lord doesn’t throw us aside when our sinful nature tries to take hold of us. He fights for me, and He fights for you. “The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.” (Exodus 14:14)

In that season of darkness, when I fought so hard against Him and His love, He never stopped fighting for me. Through the love of the Lord, I tuned out the enticing words of the enemy and turned back to God. He gently and lovingly put me back together.

He mends our broken hearts, applies bandages to our wounds, and lovingly lifts us out of the pit and back onto stable ground.

He is a caring God who loves us immensely and will not stop fighting for us!

This blog post was originally published in Kingdom Edge Magazine. Click here for some encouraging stories and devotionals.