Friday Fight 3 - Connecting the Fires

Every Friday, when I wake and pray, God places something on my heart to help me fight darkness beginning in our minds. Today is FF3.

How many of us go through seasons where we seem to endure one continuous frustrating situation after another? All of us, which leaves us questioning our actions or the reactions of those around us. Why does this seem to happen, and how come we can look back and distinctly remember the events of these awful times? After a few weeks of dealing with one unexplained chaos after another, I could not make sense of it. I turned to Ephesians 6:12 for help. Through prayer, I felt God was placing this lesson on my heart which I am sharing.

During this roller coaster of painful situations, I felt that collectively they presented themselves as a handful of small fires. Not like a blazing fire, just several smoldering fires with a concealed flame, causing me to be overly focused. The first "fire" I experienced was something hurtful at work; I began doubting my value and wondering about God's plan for my life. The next day I found myself in a circumstance with someone at the gym; I left questioning things. The chaos continued with a problem that transpired with a good friend; I left the conversation feeling rejected. Finally, the week closed with a huge family issue that was increasing my prayer time. There was an underlying frustration during this time; sudden car repairs that were not budgeted correctly. As each circumstance occurred, I felt as though I was sitting in the middle of the woods praying to God, but with small fires attempting to surround me. As each situation presented itself, it felt like another small fire ignited. At first, it felt manageable, but I felt like these hurts were surrounding me after the fourth situation occurred. If this is something you experience, please consider the following thoughts:

First, just because two or three frustrating things happen consecutively doesn't mean there is a correlation between them. Association does not imply causation. I looked back at these things that made me feel heavyhearted and understood what God was placing on my heart. Work, the gym, my friend, my family, and my car repairs were all individual situations that had nothing to do with each other. There was no correlation between them.

Second, remain focused on God, not the frustration. I had taken my focus off God only to wonder or even expect the chaos to continue. God was present in each different situation which I had connected in my mind. God never leaves or forsakes us. (Deuteronomy 31:6)
As I focused on each problem, I connected them and felt overwhelmed. But I was the one connecting each "fire " in my head; I was enabling a weapon to be formed against me to prosper.

Don't connect the fires! Don't let the enemies of our souls remove our joy using our minds. I hope this helps someone today!

Pastor Shannon
New Life Church
Isaiah 54:17