For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you will be able to stand your ground, and having done everything, to stand.
Ephesians 6:12-13 (NLT, BSB, respectively)
With everything going on recently, our problems seem magnified beyond belief. Everyone is politically charged. Everyone has an opinion. Everyone feels that they have the moral high ground. Everyone is focusing on his/her ideals.
And, as in anything, no one is pleased.
It's this thing we've fought for in this country so long - the democratic process. It's messy and annoying and frustrating as all get out. Social media further amplifies each voice, sending each message out to others who, inevitably, may not agree. As my husband puts it, what once was just shared over a bowl of cereal is out there for hundreds of people to see. Even the Presidential candidates are using this medium in a very unprofessional way. There is something about social media and something about this election; in my experience so far, no one really has wanted to engage and explore and try to come up with a solution.
Everyone has their thoughts and opinions and beliefs and whoever doesn't agree is a a villain. Attacks instead of intelligent and productive conversations are the rule of the day.
Do we just stop the conversation and keep to the whole, "Don't talk about money, politics, or religion" rot? I'm an idealist who truly believes that it's part of our rights as citizens to debate, discuss, and grow from one another even if we have completely polar opposite ideas. Maybe I'm just a nerd because I love hearing what others think.
But....
When did disagreeing with someone's ideas become hate?
When did Christians decide that it was an effective way to show Christ's love by publicly scathing each other in front of all their friends and relatives online? [preaching to myself here, too]
And how do we expect to solve any problems - left, right, or center - by parroting nonsense and telling others to delete their accounts?
How do we show human compassion in the wake of a tragedy by arguing about guns, terrorism, gender issues, and religion?
I'm not advocating relativism, but we have some complex problems and a complex world.
We - as Christians and as humans - do not need to be attacking each other or the people we disagree with or any person. We need to realize that we have a common Enemy. Satan is a destroyer and a deceiver, the source of all evil, and as long as we use human wisdom and point fingers at people we disagree with, we're never going to "get it."
There are politicians out there right now that make my flesh crawl to think about. But they are not my enemy. Those who are trying to equate what this terrorist did in Orlando to what Christians think are not my enemies.
According to this scripture, my only enemies are:
- evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world
- mighty powers in this dark world
- evil spirits in the heavenly places.
Those are the entities I need to be fighting by using the one offensive weapon that consistently works - constant, constant prayer. Satan probably just laughs to himself when I get all riled up on Facebook. It's just a distraction that pulls more people in, keeping us from doing what we're called to do and not glorifying Christ in the process.
"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds." (2 Corinthians 10:4)
When I see things online that I disagree with I'm going to try to follow my recent rule to just stay out of it, but if I can't, I am going to remember that I'm truly wrestling with the prince of darkness - not my friends, acquaintances, etc.
