​A spirit of fear, bordering on hysteria and paranoia is sweeping mercilessly across America.
 
Fear-mongering by some has caused others to feel a sense of hysteria, panic, confusion and uncertainty during these challenging times. The hysteria is affecting people spiritually as well as emotionally, mentally and relationally. .
 
Daily Breaking News bombards our citizens over-stimulated brains with Covid 19. Social, emotional and relational distancing, economic slowdown and shutdown, unemployment, hateful rhetoric, violent, life-threatening civil unrest, political elections and who knows what else is pressuring Americans to push the proverbial panic button.  
 
According to Webster, to be hysterical means “unmanageable fear, emotional excitability, emotional excess, highly emotional, explosive.”. To be hysterical means that emotions are out of control. Run-a-way fear is calling the shots in life.
 
So what are folks supposed to do? /Especially Christians who confess that they trust in the Lord during trying, troubling times to take care of our life?  
 
Sometimes a word or phrase strikes deep in our soul.
 
Christian author Oswald Chambers coined a two-word thought that struck a chord in my spirit. In his devotional My Utmost For His Highest (which every Christian should read) he said “Wait on God and He will work, but don’t wait in spiritual sulks because you cannot see an inch in front of you! Are we detached enough from our spiritual hysterics to wait on God? To wait is not to sit with folded hand, but to learn to do what we are told.”
 
“Spiritual hysterics”. What a vivid picture. Looking back, I can see myself coming unglued, acting hysterical at times. Life happens, as it will, and hysteria takes over. You and I panic, aimlessly pacing back and forth as worry, doubt and fear race through our heart and mind. We sulk, sucking our spiritual thumbs as we whine “Woe is me!”
 
The Word of God comes to the rescue when hysteria is knocking on our heart’s door. David provides a scriptural remedy for spiritual hysteria.
 
“My soul waits in silence for God only, from Him is my salvation; He only is my rock, and my salvation, my stronghold: I shall not be greatly shaken.” Psalm 62:1-2
 
David (note the use of the personal pronouns I and my six times) declares he waited on God, God only, with a silent soul. He personally confessed, smack dab in the middle of spiritual upheaval, that God alone was his rock, his salvation, his stronghold. Therefore, no need to be shaken!
 
The key word for David is “my soul waits in silence”. How about you and me? Do we know how to be silent before the Lord? To wait on Him without being hysterical? To settle down, take a deep spiritual/emotional breath before the Lord?
 
Maybe waiting in silence looks something like this: Sit down. Shut up. Be quiet. Settle down. Chill out. Stop throwing a hissy fit. Quit sucking your thumb. Stop dragging your pity-poor-me blankie around. Stop expecting people to hold your pitiful little hand while you whine and lament over your situation.
 
Get real. Face facts with faith. Buck up. Suck it up. Grow up. Stop acting like a spiritual baby. Quit falling apart at the seams. Life is not over. Wait without sulking. Pull up your spiritual bootstraps. Wait on the Lord with a calm, cool, collected disposition.
 
Waiting on God Without Being Hysterical
 

• Do not push the proverbial panic button. DO NOT PANIC!
• Wait without worrying and wondering what God is up to.
• Do not act like a drama king or drama queen before the Lord.
• Refuse to pout, sulk, whine, complain, grumble or grovel while you wait.
• Remove all distractions while you wait on the Lord. Focus your faith on Him, and Him alone.
• Wait with a spirit of hope, expectancy and anticipation as you seek the Lord.
• Wait with a peaceful, thankful, joyful spirit.
• Waiting time is never wasted time. Waiting on the Lord with the right spirit is worth the wait.
• When you have settled down, share what the Lord revealed to you with someone who is being hysterical like you used to be!  

 
Bottom line: There is no room for spiritual hysteria when our faith is grounded in Almighty God.
 
So how do you wait on the Lord…hysterically or quietly and calmly? Be honest with yourself. If you are prone to panic and hysteria, rebuke it, reject it, release it and resolve to wait on the Lord with a silent spirit when troubles arise.
 
Heavenly Father, please forgive us, your blood-bought children when we act hysterically instead of calmly.
 
“Be still (cease striving KJV) and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10
 
A Word For Your Week: Wait before the Lord without acting hysterical.

​Military boot camp. Uh Rah!
I believe I just heard some guttural groans from some of my military veteran readers who had the wonderful experience (I might be being facetious!) of an all-expense paid excursion, courtesy of Uncle Sam, to military training.  
When the drab green bus carrying me and a load of fresh meat, I mean new recruits,  arrived at the United States Naval Training Center in San Diego, California  in the twilight of evening,  the first thing the Dark Side Of The Force  drill sergeants did was to yell at us, calling  us come names I will not repeat here.
Second, they cynically shaved off our 1970s’ hippy-style hair, beards, and mustaches. Third, they issued us our new wardrobe: Kaki, pea green, and camo colored dungarees and shirts. The powers in charge dumbed us down to all look like a ragtag band of baldheaded, green clothed aliens.
 Fourth, we were issued our equipment. Utility belt, canteen, ammo magazines, battle helmets, thick, heavy black boots, which were always to be spit shined, and a firearm. Off we went to torture, I mean training, then maybe a war zone. Of course, our superiors screamed and cussed at us non-stop, reminding us that they had become our new mommas!
A soldier without weapons and training is doomed to defeat.  
Imagine a soldier, under sudden attack by the enemy, running out of his barracks in his skivvies (underwear for you civilians) to repel those sent to kill him. Preposterous you say. Of course.
But how often do professing Christians, good soldiers of Jesus Christ, attempt to battle Satan and his demonic forces without their spiritual weapons. No wonder the faith of many fails in the heat of battle.
Good news! You and I need not be weaponless. In Ephesians 6:10-20 (I encourage you to read it) Paul describes in detail the “whole armor God”, the weaponry God issues/equips us with for victory over the enemy of our souls.  
Your and my responsibility is to wear the armor. Paul exhorts us to “put on the whole armor of God.” Note: “put on” is my responsibility. I am to put on all the armor, not some of it. 
Observations About Spiritual Armor

• Spiritual weapons are God Issued, not government issued.
• Weapons must be maintained, cared for, kept in operating order to be effective in battle.
• Weapons are most effective when soldiers practice with them. Training matters.
• Partial armor is not whole armor. Partial armor can get a soldier killed.
• Armor is not shared. Each soldier has his own weaponry.

Paul was thinking about the Roman soldier and his weapons when he wrote about spiritual armor. Here are the pieces of our spiritual armor Christians are to put on, to take up, when battling  
Loins girded with truth. The belt the Roman warrior wore around his waist connected the other pieces of armor. He also carried essential battle items in it. For Christians, truth from the Word of God is the belt that holds our faith life together. Truth protects us from lies, falsehood and deception.  
Breastplate of righteousness. The Roman soldier’s chest was protected by an armor-plated vest that covered his vital organs front and back.  A hit to the heart meant curtains for a Roman soldier. God’s righteousness is a Christian’s fiery dart proof spiritual vest that protects our heart which belongs to the Lord. God “looks on the heart” so it must always be protected.
Feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. A Roman soldier could not fight effectively barefoot. His sandals fortified his feet in battle, assisting him to advance against the enemy. Our boots as Christians are the Gospel of peace that we share with the lost. Remember, spiritual warfare is a battle for souls.  We advance with peace because of the Prince of peace.
Helmet of salvation. A Roman soldier’s helmet protected his head from a mortal wound.  A head blow could result in death. A Christian’s “helmet of salvation” guards his mind. His thinking, his attitude and actions are based on his/her faith relationship with Christ who they confess as their personal Savior and Lord. Salvation through Christ saves us from Satan’s onslaught. 
Sword of the Spirit. The Roman soldier’s sword was a wicked weapon. Razor sharp and double-edged, it could easily slice through an enemy combatant. Paul identifies our spiritual sword as the Word of God. Hebrews 4:12 says our sword is two-edged and sharp. The Word of God is one of the most effective offensive weapons in our spiritual arsenal. Your Bible is your sword! If you do not know the Word, you are a sitting duck for the enemy. Satan fled from Jesus in Mathew 4:1-11 because Jesus said three times ‘It is written”.    
Pray at all times in the Spirit. The Roman warrior probably prayed to someone or something in the heart of a firefight. Paul exhorts Christ’s followers to be prayer warriors. To pray to the One, True, Living God in the name of Jesus, through the power of Holy Spirit.  I believe with all my heart that Satan and hell trembles when Christians pray. 
There you have it. Spiritual warfare fought by spiritual soldiers equipped with spiritual weapons.
My friend, in a war zone, soldiers are on twenty-four-hour alert. The enemy does not care if a soldier would like to take a nap, play cards, or send a text to his sweetheart. On alert means be ready to rock and roll with full armor when the enemy attacks.
How is your spiritual armor? Is it on twenty-four seven, three sixty-five?
“Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.”  Ephesians 6:10
A Word For Your Week: Put your spiritual armor on every single day.

​January 7, 1973. I remember that date well.
I enlisted in the military.
Upon hearing of my enlistment, my non-Christian friends thought I had a screw loose! The Viet Nam war was still being fought. My draft number had not been called. So I would not have to go to war.
As a brand-new Christian, the Holy Spirit directed me to enlist in the United States Navy and become a Hospital Corpsman, with hopes of going to medical school through the service to become a doctor. I served four years in the Navy, two of them with the 3rd Division Fleet Marine Force. I would not pursue becoming a physician as God called me to preach the Good News of Jesus Christ.  
At the Spokane, Washington Federal Building, I voluntarily took the solemn oath to uphold, defend and protect the Constitution of the United States of America from enemies both domestic and foreign. I also swore (not profanity!) to obey the orders of my Commander in Chief, the President of the United States.  I, like millions of patriotic Americans, became one of Uncle Sam’s soldiers, a GI (which means government issue).  
In my lifetime I have enlisted in two fighting forces.
When I received Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior on October 6, 1972, I enlisted in God’s holy army. Paul writes in II Timothy 2:3-4 “Suffer hardship with me as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.”
Guess what, fellow believer in Christ? You and I are in the army now! Now what?
Paul states that a Christian is “a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” Soldiers leave civilian life to dedicate themselves full-time to being a warrior who battles Satan and his demonic forces in the name of the Lord.  Soldiers suffer hardship, make sacrifices. Being a soldier fighting in a war is not like being home sitting in a comfortable recliner, watching a ballgame, eating Nachos!  
 Soldiers defend freedom and the ones they love. Christians leave the unbelieving world behind to serve in God’s Kingdom. As God’s good soldiers, they proclaim the love of Jesus Christ and the righteousness of God.    
Soldiers follow orders. As good soldiers of Christ, who is our Commander in Chief who enlisted us, we serve to please Him. Christians get their marching orders from the Lord. Our mission, orders, duties and lifestyle are clearly laid out in the Bible. You and I who confess Christ please Him when we obey Him.  
 God’s good soldiers fight the good fight of faith.
 I Timothy 6:12 reads “Fight the good fight of faith, take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” The faith fight is about eternal life. God’s good soldiers fight to contend for their faith in Christ that they confessed before many other people.  
God’s good, faith fighting soldiers put on the whole armor of God. We will detail the pieces of spiritual armor from Ephesians 6:10-20 next week.  
God’s faith fighters war a good warfare.
Ii Corinthians 10:3-5 states “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” Through prayer, the Word of God, the armor of God, the name of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit, Christ’s good soldiers take down, demolish, and destroy everything that Satan attacks our faith with.
At times, life feels like a war, doesn’t it? Spiritual warfare is real, and so are Christ’s good soldiers.  As the blood-bought sons and daughters of God, we choose to fight the good fight of faith, war a good warfare and win the spiritual battles confronting us.
My friend, ff you confess Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, you are a soldier in God’s holy army.
God’s counting on every soldier in His spiritual army to be on active duty, fighting off Satan, living a Christlike life and witnessing to lost souls so that they would be saved through faith in Jesus Christ.
One of my all-time favorite hymns of the church is Onward Christian Soldiers. I can hear congregations belting it out with Christian enthusiasm!
“Onward Christian soldiers! Marching as to war, with the Cross of Jesus going on before. Christ the Royal Master leads against the foe. Forward into battle, see His banners go.”     
Onward Christian soldier, marching as to war. With the Cross of Jesus, going on before.”
Are you faithfully fulfilling your enlistment in God’s army as a good faith soldier, with the Cross of Jesus going before you?
A Word For Your Week: War a good warfare as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

​Imagine If you and I could pull back the cosmic curtain, the spiritual veil separating earth from heaven and take a sneak peek at what our natural eyes cannot see. Our finite minds would be blown away with what is going on upstairs. Unbelievable, breathtaking battle scenes would make Star Wars look like a picnic in the park!
Spiritual war is happening in the heavenly places right now.
Heavenly warfare is a spiritual rumble, a super-heavyweight fight between the forces of God and good and Satan and evil.  
The war is fought over the eternal souls of men, women, boys and girls.  
Have you ever wondered why some things happen and you have no natural, rational, reasonable, earthly explanation or clue as to why? You scratch your head in bewilderment at what is going on. What’s happening doesn’t make sense. Or does it?
Spiritual warfare is not fantasy. It is real.
A distraught Christian lady I was counseling, with tears streaming down her face, lamented “Pastor Steve, our marriage and family is under attack.” I responded “Mam. you are correct. Christians are always under spiritual attack. Some battles are fiercer than others. Spiritual warfare is real. Believers in Christ must fight back with the whole armor of God, push back the gates of hell and defeat Satan in Jesus’ mighty, victorious name.”
How do we know about spiritual warfare?  The Bible tells us.
Paul gives us a glimpse behind the holy curtain of heaven in Ephesians 6:10-12.
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in heavenly places.”
I get spiritual goose bumps reading those words. Let’s summarize what Paul teaches.

• You and I are exhorted to be strong in the Lord and the power of His might.
• The devil is a schemer, a strategist who opposes all of humanity.
• Followers of Christ can stand firm against Satan’s schemes. Three times in verses 10, 13, and 14 we are exhorted to stand firm.
• Human struggle is not against humans. Our fight is not with each other.
• Our battle is with rulers, powers, world forces of darkness, and spiritual forces of wickedness. The Evil One, evil forces and evil are our arch enemy.
• Christians are to put on the whole armor of God to stand firm against the devil.
• In two weeks I will lay out the whole armor of God and how to put it on. (Ephesians 6:14-18)

Too many people, some Christians included, don’t believe in spiritual warfare. Not believeing in its existence does not negate it. Those who deny the reality of spiritual warfare often fight the wrong fights in life.
They pick fights with people, government, institutions, business, political opponents, the church, religious leaders  and even mother-in-laws! Those who pick the wrong battles fail to realize and recognize that behind their fights is a bigger fight going on, spiritual warfare.  
The Apostle Paul instructed Timothy, his son in the faith and soon to be a minister of the Gospel, concerning what fight to fight. ”Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” (I Timothy 6:12).
The right fight is the faith fight. The faith fight is all about eternal life. Next week we will discuss being spiritual warriors, good soldiers of Jesus Christ, who fight the good fight of faith.
Stop picking fights with people. Instead, pick your fight with spiritual forces in wicked places through faith in Jesus Christ.
A few things I have learned about spiritual warfare in forty-eight years following Jesus.

1. Satan and his evil, demonic forces hate me. I am not real fond of them either!
2. I am covered by the blood of the Lamb and my testimony in Christ is unshakable. The devil cannot touch my life when I stand firm in my confession of faith in the Lord.
3. The devil battles, but he has lost the war. He knows it. His forces battle in vain. He is a sore loser who harasses Christians by trying to discourage them in their faith and seeks to keep unbelievers from coming to Christ.
4. Satan cannot penetrate the whole armor of God. God’s spiritual armor that I am to put on every single day is impenetrable.
5. Spiritual war is real indeed. So is the overwhelming power of God to defeat Satan and the forces of evil because of His Son’s death and resurrection from the dead! l
6. I have red my Bible from cover to cover many times. The conclusion of the matter is: GOD’S SIDE WINS!!!

Keep fighting the right fight against evil and see the goodness of God prevail!
 “The battle is the Lord’s…” I Samuel 17:47
“But victory belongs to the Lord.” Proverbs 21:31
 A Word For Your Week: Walk by faith in the victory Jesus has won for you over Satan.

​American society is confused, conflicted concerning what to do with people who choose to do evil.
Fact check: Evil exists. Evildoers really do evil things. Evil needs to be dealt with.
Some gutless, spineless, fearful folks propose and purpose to appease, excuse and even endorse evildoers. Evil only increases when not confronted.
Others with moral backbones and courageous hearts demand and expect from authorities that those who practice evil pay for their actions. Serious consequences for doing evil stops evildoers in their tracks.  
Many goodhearted, righteous, reasonable people are praying and hoping that evildoers might have a change of heart. Changed hearts lead to changed behavior.
Why is a changed heart a big deal? What would a change of heart look like?
According to God’s Word, the Bible, life flows from the heart.
 Proverbs 4:23 states “Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life.” You and I are exhorted to carefully guard, set a watch over our heart because good and evil can spring forth from our hearts.  
The Bible also says God looks at our heart.
I Samuel 17:7 reads “God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart.” Jesus said that our words, whether good or evil, come from our heart. (Matthew 12:34-35, Luke 6:45). Attitudes and actions originate in our heart, not our head.   
The bad news is that our hearts, without God, are wicked. Jeremiah 17:9-10 declares “The heart is more deceitful than all else, and is desperately wicked; who can understand it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give to each man according to his ways, according to the results of his deeds. The truth is that our hearts are evil without God. The Bible says so and we know our heart well enough that evil lurks there from time to time.
The good news is our hearts, with Jesus Christ, are good.  Ezekiel 36:26-27 states “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”  II Corinthians 5:17 declares “Therefore, if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away, behold, new things have come.” New heart. New spirit. New creature. New life. Sounds really good to me!
You, me and every human being ever created needs a spiritual, moral heart transplant!
Evil heart. Evil words. Evil behavior. Good heart. Good words. Good behavior.
Thanks be to God that an evil heart can change and become a good one. If an evil heart cannot become good, we are all in a world of hurt!
Let’s cut to the chase. Evildoers need a new heart. Genealogy, pedigree, history, education, economics, politics, communities, movements or anything else man proposes cannot change a human heart.  Our culture is fooling itself if we think anyone’s heart and subsequent behavior will change without the love of Christ in their heart.  
So, back to the question as to what to do with those who do evil in our culture.
Christians must lead them to a saving knowledge and personal experience of salvation through faith in God’s Son Jesus Christ. Only Jesus can change hearts.
I will say it again: only Jesus can change hearts. His sacrificial death on the Cross where He shed His precious blood for our sin cleanses us from evil, making us good in God’s eyes.
A hateful heart becomes a loving heart when Jesus resides there.
It is not that difficult my brothers and sisters in Christ. Change a person’s heart, their life changes! Reaching the unsaved is the mission of His witnesses (Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8). Evangelism, reaching and winning the lost to Christ, is our primary mission.
What you and I can do to reach out to evil people to help them have a change of heart.

1. Pray for the salvation of evildoers. That evil people will repent of evil and turn to Christ.
2. As the Lord leads, share your Christian faith with those who do evil instead of good.
3.  Show evildoers a good heart. Jesus said to never return evil for evil, but good for evil. The Apostle Paul taught “Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men.” Romans 12:17. Tough to do sometimes isn’t it?
4. Rejoice when an evil person becomes good through the love of God and faith in Jesus Christ! Celebrate their new heart and new life in the Lord.
5. Encourage fellow followers of Jesus to do good to those who do evil. Serve evildoers when possible. Jesus’ love never fails and always wins heart!

It is high time for the body of Christ, the church, to sincerely seek the Lord, to humble ourselves before God, repent of our sins, seek God’s forgiveness, be healed  (II Chronicles 7:14) then rise up with His love, mercy  and grace to reach those who are enslaved by the Evil One and do evil.  .
A word of warning for our day. The prophet Isaiah’s Holy Spirit inspired words serve as a dire, ominous warning to all of us that must be heeded to avoid destruction in our lives and the lives of others.
“Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and clever in their own sight. Woe to those who are heroes in drinking wine, and valiant men in mixing strong drink, who justify the wicked for a bribe and take away the rights of the ones who are n the right.” Isaiah 5:20-23
What do you think about God’s WOES in this scripture? I think of not so good things! When God says “Woe”, you and I had better wake up and pay strict attention!
Do you call evil evil and good good? Do you in any way support anyone who justifies the wicked and takes away the rights of those who are right?
Search your heart my friend. Make sure your heart lines up with God’s Word. Then share your good heart in Christ with someone whose heart is hurting because of evil. 
A Word For Your Week: A good or evil heart is our choice.