MondayReflection

  28^th August 2023

QUESTION

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How should a Christian respond to bullying?

The Bible does not speak specifically about bullies or bullying, but there are many biblical principles that apply to the issue.

First, it is important to understand what bullying is.
A simple definition would be "using superior strength or power to intimidate people." Bullies are those who prey on people they perceive as weaker and threaten them with harm, or actually harm them, in order to get their own way.

Obviously, bullying is not godly.
Christians are called to love others and to look out for those who are weaker, not to intimidate or manipulate people. It being evident that Christians should not be bullies, how should Christians respond to bullying?

(© Copyright 2002-2023 Got Questions Ministries.)

Signs You're in Spiritual Warfare and How to Fight It
Debbie McDaniel

We're in a battle in this world - a spiritual warfare battle. We may not see it, we might forget it's there.
But the enemy would love nothing more than to fill our minds with discouragement and defeat.

If you're a believer who is living like salt and light in a dark world, you won't go for long without encountering spiritual warfare through obstacles and attacks he will hurl your direction.
And though we can't stop his cruel attacks, we don't have to let him win.

God reminds us in His word to stay aware of Satan's schemes, to live alert in this world, and to stay close to Him.

God gives specific instructions in his Word, he gives us all we need to stand strong in this life and have victory over the battlefields of our body, mind, and soul. Yet all too often we race through busy, full days, ill-equipped, unprepared, or simply not aware of what we're up against, or who the real enemy even is.

The forces of darkness don't wait for us to be ready for their attack.
They're ruthless, determined, and cunning. The devil could not care less if we "feel" prepared or prayed up for our day. In fact, he prefers we're not.

But in a broken, dark world, how can we really know if we're facing the expected difficulties of life as compared to true spiritual warfare attacks of the enemy?

Jesus, Himself told us that in this life we would experience troubles, we know this to be true.
And though many times, we may not fully know who or what is behind the struggles, we can be assured that God equips us for battle and He instructs us to live alert.

Spiritual warfare is not giving the devil more attention or focusing too much on his evil ways.

Biblical warfare is making ourselves more attentive to what God is doing and remembering to stand firm and let Him fight our fiercest battles. There's power through His Spirit, His Word, and in prayer, and we can be confident that He is always with us, leading our way and covering us from behind.

Though we live with daily struggles and temptations all around us, many times there are spiritual attacks on our lives that put us at greater risk to go astray.

It is a battle, a ruthless one, and the enemy will fight hard against us.
He desires not only to bring us down, but also all those around us. He loves to see news stories splashed across headlines of believers who have fallen, who have made terrible choices of sin.

He loves disunity among Christians and wants nothing more than to break up families and every relationship we hold dear.
We must stand strong and stay aware. Don't give him a foothold into your life, don't give him even an inch of room.

He'll come in and wreak havoc and try to lead us astray faster than we even know what happened.

Often when we find ourselves weary, already weakened, we're on his radar.
Jesus Himself is our greatest example of this when He faced the devil's temptation in the wilderness.
He was fasting, He was hungry, he was physically weakened, and tired, and of course, the enemy jumped on that time to bring on the temptations to a greater degree than ever.

One slip-up is all he was looking for.
One wrong move. One "yes" to sin. But Jesus stood strong and resisted his attacks, every single one. He spoke God's word out loud, He held fast to truth and stepped over Satan's vicious lies and attacks. And He leads us to the same today. Don't be taken unaware. When you start sensing strong pulls away from God's truth and ways, you can know who is at the bottom of it all.

Bible references avaiable, on request

iBelieve Contributing Writer
Debbie McDaniel is a writer, pastor's wife, mom to three amazing kids (and a lot of pets).
Join her each morning on Fresh Day Ahead's Facebook page, for daily encouragement in living strong, free, hope-filled lives.
Find her also on Twitter and at her blog www.debbiemcdaniel.com.