The Fighting Mentality
Anyone who knows me knows that I am a big believer in spiritual warfare. I have seen it, experienced it, and known it. I have no doubt that there are spiritual forces of evil, as Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:12.
However, I have learned that doctrines that consistently and constantly focus on the spiritual battle can harm more than we want to admit.
C.S. Lewis wrote in The Screwtape Letters, "There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight."
There are so many Christian denominations, Christian theologies, that have urged well-meaning people to take up the fight. These well-meaning people turn into, to put it bluntly, people that others avoid. They are the ones that believe if they are not constantly saying, "Praise the Lord" and "I'll pray about it," they are giving into the devil and turning their backs on God. They are the ones who believe if others are put off by what often turns into fear tactics, those people are eternally lost or they would see the importance of what they are trying to fear them into accepting.
I was in that category once. I believed the way to please God was by making sure everyone knew I was fighting the devil. I believed the way to show God I was serious was to make sure my every word, my every action, my every thought showed devotion to Him. Then I wondered why I was miserable when I could not keep it up.
From my own experience, I believe this fighting mentality strongly influenced my very real battle with scrupulosity. Just as with obsessive compulsive disorder, people find themselves counting or cleaning or washing or performing whatever action in order to feel that everything is going to be okay; the fighting mentality convinced me that I had to pray a certain way and be on constant guard against the devil and use certain words to show my devotion to God in order to ensure the outcome I desired.
So often, the Bible Verse that is used to teach this fighting mentality is I Peter 5:8, which tells us the devil walks around as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. I do agree with this Passage. The devil definitely is. But the unfortunate fact is, the fighting theology that promotes the fighting mentality turns God into a roaring lion, seeking to devour us. It convinces us that if we are not constantly reminding ourselves that we are overcomers through Him, if we are not constantly seeing the battle around us with the world, the flesh, and the devil, if we are not pushing and pushing and pushing our way into the lives of others; then God's going to be disappointed. He's going to reject us. He's going to give us over to the roaring lion who seeks to devour our very soul.
Jesus promised that those who come to Him would receive rest. He promised that His yoke is easy and His burden is light. From experience, I can tell you that there is nothing restful or easy or light about the fighting theology. It leaves its victims on constant alert, on constant paranoia that they are going to fail. Then, when a real spiritual or emotional battle does come along, they are too tired to fight. They don't know what to do. They don't know where to turn. They feel as though they will never break free.
Spiritual warfare is very real, my friends. But sometimes we create our own spiritual warfare by our outlook on life and God. It has almost been a year since God whispered to me that I need to start enjoying life again. It has been almost a year since He led me to discover joy and peace. He was with me in the thick of the battle. He was fighting for me. I just needed Him. He brings rest. He doesn't bring turmoil. He doesn't bring spiritual pain and anguish. He doesn't bring a burden.
Everyday, I see people who are so afraid to enter that rest. I see those people who are at battle with everyone around them, because they view it as being in battle against the devil. I see people who are afraid to be human because they are afraid of displeasing God and being in league with the devil themselves. I hear people saying, "I will win this battle. I just have to keep praying and keep praising and keep saying 'Hallelujah' enough times; and, eventually, God will help." I so want to say, "Stop! I've been there. Stop trying to please God by battling. Rest. Relax. Allow Him to take charge. Start enjoying life. Take baby steps. Let God have the control."
I hope this post gets across what I am trying say. I've been trying to put into words the ideas I am thinking. I'm sure there will be more later.
However, I have learned that doctrines that consistently and constantly focus on the spiritual battle can harm more than we want to admit.
C.S. Lewis wrote in The Screwtape Letters, "There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight."
There are so many Christian denominations, Christian theologies, that have urged well-meaning people to take up the fight. These well-meaning people turn into, to put it bluntly, people that others avoid. They are the ones that believe if they are not constantly saying, "Praise the Lord" and "I'll pray about it," they are giving into the devil and turning their backs on God. They are the ones who believe if others are put off by what often turns into fear tactics, those people are eternally lost or they would see the importance of what they are trying to fear them into accepting.
I was in that category once. I believed the way to please God was by making sure everyone knew I was fighting the devil. I believed the way to show God I was serious was to make sure my every word, my every action, my every thought showed devotion to Him. Then I wondered why I was miserable when I could not keep it up.
From my own experience, I believe this fighting mentality strongly influenced my very real battle with scrupulosity. Just as with obsessive compulsive disorder, people find themselves counting or cleaning or washing or performing whatever action in order to feel that everything is going to be okay; the fighting mentality convinced me that I had to pray a certain way and be on constant guard against the devil and use certain words to show my devotion to God in order to ensure the outcome I desired.
So often, the Bible Verse that is used to teach this fighting mentality is I Peter 5:8, which tells us the devil walks around as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. I do agree with this Passage. The devil definitely is. But the unfortunate fact is, the fighting theology that promotes the fighting mentality turns God into a roaring lion, seeking to devour us. It convinces us that if we are not constantly reminding ourselves that we are overcomers through Him, if we are not constantly seeing the battle around us with the world, the flesh, and the devil, if we are not pushing and pushing and pushing our way into the lives of others; then God's going to be disappointed. He's going to reject us. He's going to give us over to the roaring lion who seeks to devour our very soul.
Jesus promised that those who come to Him would receive rest. He promised that His yoke is easy and His burden is light. From experience, I can tell you that there is nothing restful or easy or light about the fighting theology. It leaves its victims on constant alert, on constant paranoia that they are going to fail. Then, when a real spiritual or emotional battle does come along, they are too tired to fight. They don't know what to do. They don't know where to turn. They feel as though they will never break free.
Spiritual warfare is very real, my friends. But sometimes we create our own spiritual warfare by our outlook on life and God. It has almost been a year since God whispered to me that I need to start enjoying life again. It has been almost a year since He led me to discover joy and peace. He was with me in the thick of the battle. He was fighting for me. I just needed Him. He brings rest. He doesn't bring turmoil. He doesn't bring spiritual pain and anguish. He doesn't bring a burden.
Everyday, I see people who are so afraid to enter that rest. I see those people who are at battle with everyone around them, because they view it as being in battle against the devil. I see people who are afraid to be human because they are afraid of displeasing God and being in league with the devil themselves. I hear people saying, "I will win this battle. I just have to keep praying and keep praising and keep saying 'Hallelujah' enough times; and, eventually, God will help." I so want to say, "Stop! I've been there. Stop trying to please God by battling. Rest. Relax. Allow Him to take charge. Start enjoying life. Take baby steps. Let God have the control."
I hope this post gets across what I am trying say. I've been trying to put into words the ideas I am thinking. I'm sure there will be more later.
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