Gospel Gazette Online
Volume 18 Number 12 December 2016
Page 12

Engaged in Battle

Raymond A. Leonard

We are in this fight together
In the service of the Lord.
We fight the force of evil with
God’s Word the Spirit’s sword.

God has called us into His service,
His banner to hold up high,
As we preach and teach the Gospel,
That sinners need not die.

When we put on our service mantle,
A commitment to God we did make,
That we would obey His commandments
And His will we would not break.

Thus, as we engage in this battle,
In which God has called us to fight,
We will do it as men of honor,
Shining forth Christ’s Gospel light.

We have no authority other than
the power contained in God’s Word,
Which only has life changing power
When by those in need it is heard.

We must be persistent in the battle,
Our responsibility we cannot shirk.
We are fighting for eternal souls,
And evil does everywhere still lurk.

God has pressed us into this battle;
We are engaged in a righteous cause.
Pray that we never get so discouraged
That we want to quit or pause.


Where Does God Fit In?

David Deagel

Football, baseball, soccer, Facebook, Candy Crush, shopping, work, family time, sleep, friends, cars, motorcycles, gardening, eating, cooking, home repairs, cutting grass, shoveling snow, with all these things in life, where is there room for God? With more advancements in technology, entertainment and the comforts of home, we have secluded ourselves from the outside world. We stay home and are entertained with the television, playing games and watching YouTube videos in the heated and cooled environment of our homes. Rarely do we take the time to socialize and befriend our neighbors besides the casual “Hello. How are you?” greeting. I greatly fear that this societal norm is making its way into the Lord’s church. There seems to be a decreased desire to spend additional time fellowshipping with other Christians and studying God’s Word together.

I recently conducted a survey concerning Sunday evening services. The majority of those who replied expressed that they did not regularly attend evening services because they were too busy or too tired. We all spend too much time worrying and working towards things we cannot change and not enough time seeking after the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:25-34). Paul stated that bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things (1 Timothy 4:8). It serves as a reminder for us to be more focused on the spiritual than on the physical.

What (or who) has made us so busy that we have little time left of our day and week to spend in study and worship of God? Satan! When we are too busy and exhausted to serve and worship God, Satan has won. Let us never be too busy to serve God.

If it is the case that we are involved in multitudes of activities and find ourselves with little time, serve God in what you are doing. Matthew records Jesus’ statement, “Go therefore” (Matthew 28:19), and the idea of the wording is, “Having gone.” While you are doing whatever it is that you need to do throughout your day, serve God in addition. Utilize Facebook as an evangelistic tool. When you have a family gathering talk about Scripture. When you are at the soccer fields watching your child compete, tell your story of salvation. Talk to the waitress about your faith, leave contact information about the church along with your tip. There are ample opportunities for us to serve His kingdom through our busy schedules and bring glory to God (1 Peter 4:11).

[Editor's Note: We may never know when we may happen upon a Cornelius (Acts 10) or a Samaritan woman (John 4) who is looking for the Christ. It is not the child of God’s job to coerce or force anyone to do or to believe anything, but it is our job to provide opportunity (Mark 16:15-16) and to persuade with the Gospel (Romans 1:16) when we have an opening to do so (2 Corinthians 5:11; 1 Peter 3 15). We might just be the exact providential tool (Genesis 45:5) of God needed to acquaint a lost soul with the Gospel of Christ, and so we need to function accordingly. ~ Louis Rushmore, Editor]


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