Soldier of The Cross,  the biggest struggle of the flesh, and the best strategy of the enemy is to get you to try to be in control.

     You see clearly what needs to be done, and you know just how to do it.  The problem is, you are not the one who can do it. It is someone else who must do it - perhaps a spouse or a friend.  It seems so obvious to you.  Why can he not see what he has to do?  And why can't he hear you when you tell him?

     What about your own issues?   Does everything have to be fixed now?

     Soldier, if you are really going to follow the Lord and not just talk about it, you must first back off and pray.  Really pray, not just think about it and say you are praying about it.   And, most of the time, praying about a matter means prevailing prayer, not just a lick-and-a -promise prayer.

     Praying about the matter lets the Soldier into the Light.  There is sight and when there is sight, there is wisdom.  Wisdom involves timing, and much of the time, waiting.

     Oh, Soldier, please.  Wait on the Lord.  He has never let anyone down.  It is the flesh, so wanting the answer now.  Control now.  And the enemy loves to pour oil on the scalding fire of hurry.

     We know so little.  We have so much.  The Light of his Word, the Indwelling Holy Spirit, and the promise of answered prayer.

     Buck up.  Take it to Him.  After all, anything else falls short of the thing you really want to see - The Lord of All.

     Tell Him.  today.
     Aloud.

     Soldier of The Cross,  do not decide for yourself what the New Year will hold.

     According to His Word, we must resolve to trust and obey.  Love wins us, motivates us, heals us and empowers us.

     Let this year be the Year of Prayer;
     The year of yieldedness;
     The year of letting Him make the deepest changes in us;
     The year of scalding,  cauterizing Love;
     The year of Learning to Lean.

     Soldier of The Cross, stand before Him and let him know, and do it aloud.
     Now.

     He didn't die and then defeat death just to improve your life.

     He is preparing you for Eternity.  He is healing your land.  He is restoring your soul.  He wants to reveal Himself though your life. 

     When was the last time you told Him you want to be a Living Sacrifice?  Are your children yours or are they His?  What about your  money.  Is it yours to spend as you like, or is obedience involved?  If all is His, why is there so much worry and frantic effort to fix everything quickly?  How much do you need the aproval of others?

     Soldier of the Cross, we all need to be regularly reminded of the basics: 

     The best followers make the best leaders;
     This world is not our home;
     There is  no walking in the Light without the freshness of God's Word, which fuels prayer;
      There is always another closet in the heart that needs to be unlocked and healed.
  

     There is no Life apart from taking up the Cross and following Him.

     Lord, please change me.  My need for you grows all the time, and I long for you more and more.  Please do whatever needs to be done in the deepest part of me in order to make me more like you.    For this next year, I fully commit to serve, love and follow you.

     Soldier, there is no straddling both.  You are either His or you are not.

     The conflict of the ages has always been, whom will you serve? 

     This is the bottom line for everything.    You will either have the security of resting on The Rock of Ages, or you will be a sail in whatever breeze comes along.

     What does it mean to be a Soldier of The Cross?   Are you a living sacrifice, or are you going to try to blindly cut your own path?

     The Cross is the place of the death of the flesh - the death of the Old Man. You have a choice.  Those without Christ have no choice.    But, you can chose to enter into the Sabbath Rest, or you can chose to writhe in the small container of the situation.

     You must tell Him you will be a Living Sacrifice.  You must pursue Him.  You must want to know him.  You must make this decision, and you have the power to do it, because when you were born again, you received the Indwelling Holy Spirit, even though you have never invited Him to work in your innermost being.

     So, do it now.  Tell Him.
     Aloud.
     Today.   Look up at Him who died for you,  so you would not have to experience hell in this life.
     Gaze upon Him.    And, don't look down.

     Soldier of The Cross,  God's Word is still the bottom line.

     You need it and it has to be fresh.  Daily.  Even perhaps read outloud. Elisabeth Elliot once told me the Bible could be read aloud in fewer than 80 hours, and that a Believer ought to consider reading it aloud during the quiet time.

     You want to hear from Him?  He is always speaking.  He is always leading.  He knows each tiny detail and He sees the splinters that feel like they will never come out.

     The most important thing for you to remember is, this world is not your home.  You are trying to resolve things as though this were the end.  You know better, but the feeling is so overwhelming.

     We always need to hear His voice.  His word.  Read it.  And, maybe  out loud. 

    If you are a Believer, start with I and II Thessalonians.

     Declare to Him you are His, and that you will be a Living Sacrifice. 

     Are you a Soldier or are you not?  Tell Him.
     Today.
     Aloud.

     It does not need to be resolved right now.

     Soldier of The Cross, part of serving the Lord is realizing there will be misunderstanding and false accusation.    There are no exceptions.

     He was secure.  He said whatever was needed, and remember?  "He opened not His mouth" (Isaiah 53).

     Why does it have to be fixed right now?  Because it feels like an emergency.  Is it easily resolved?    No.   There is a campaign against the work of the Lord, and He is fully aware of it.

     It is the flesh that is insecure and  insists on beating and beating the issue into resolution.  The problem is, most of the time,  there is no immediate resolution.
 

     The issue is, does He know what is happening?
     Can He be trusted?
     Are you willing to wait for Him while the misunderstanding continues?

     Tell Him.  today, and tell Him aloud.

     When you step across The Line and decide to take up The Cross and follow Him, you must understand some things:

     There is going to be misunderstanding that will not resolve in this life.
     There is going to be false accusation.
     There is going to be deliberate undermining.

     We have an enemy who is never inactive.    Remember, you are being watched by all of the hosts of heaven as well as the fallen.

     Soldier of The Cross, you must often look ahead, moving forward knowing He will lead through the wilderness.   There are times to take action, and there are times to absolutely refuse to respond. Then, you must move forward.   

     It is the flesh that always wants to give the other party what they deserve.  Soldier, you do not know what the other party deserves.  That is for Him. 

     It is the flesh that always has to be vindicated.

     Should you defend yourself?  Perhaps, and perhaps not.  Be in prayer.  We learn in these situations.

     Remember, "He opened not His mouth . . . "

     Stand before Him, lay it out to Him, and make sure it is aloud.

      Remember this little chorus?

             My Lord knows the way thru the wilderness -
           All I have to do is follow.
           Strength for today is mine all the way,
           And all I need for tomorrow;
           My Lord knows the way thru the wilderness -
           All I have to do is follow.

     He never intended that we should figure it out, in order to proceed without Him.  We are being prepared for Eternity. 

     Age tends to defy following Him through the wilderness.   As the body weakens, the unseen flesh struggles for control, often in the form of rejecting change or shying away from new responsibilities.

     In this life, there will  not be a day during which we will not need to follow. 

     Release your concept of what it means to follow, and allow the Indwelling Holy Spirit to lead you into the frontier of faith.

     Tell Him today.  Aloud

     Yes, I can thank Him in the middle of the worst of it.

     I don't have to feel relief from the situation.  It is about agreeing with Him no matter what.  I can go to Him and thank Him because I trust Him and know He would not allow anything other than preparation for heaven.

     I will stand before Him and agree with Him that this world is not my home.
     I will agree that these people are His and not mine. 
     I will agree that He makes jewels out of ashes.
     I will agree that He has never made a mistake.
     I will agree that He may always do anything He wills with my life.

     Yes, I will submit to the surgical knife of the Lover of My Soul.

     Zeal is not always a feeling.

     We tend to think of zeal as an energy level, stimulated by a goal.  A zealot is simply someone who will not give up, and continues on.  A zealot is unstoppable because of a vision of what can be, or should be, or must be.

     A Soldier of The Cross is one who has made the decision to be a Living Sacrifice.  That means he or she has clearly seen this world is not our home.  We keep moving because we serve One who is building a Place for us, and because a supernatural transformation has taken place in us and is still taking place. 

     For The Soldier of The Cross, zeal is the result of a private prayer life that daily yields all to Him.  Zeal is the result of dying to Self, so there can be room for the Holy Spirit to motivate us and reveal Jesus.

     Zeal doesn't mean having to have thousands of people in church.  Zeal can be the unpaid servant who cleans up after each meeting, who always calls on the sick,  or who quietly prays about folks' troubles instead of talking about them.

     Zeal means often doing what you don't feel like doing.

     Ask Him to reveal this to you.

     Put one foot in front of the other and keep moving.   Don't look down.