Untangle

“Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.” (2 Timothy 2:3-4).

Hello, my friend…

It amazes me how easily we can all get caught up in the “affairs” of this life! I am no less susceptible than you are. Like Paul, I cry out, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” (Romans 7:15, NIV). Good grief! I get so wrapped up in living life, handling things as they come along, blindly (most of the time) walking down some path – only to realize just how far off-course I have travelled. I say “most of the time” because, just like many of you, I sometimes see red flags but blow right through them.

In writing to Timothy, Paul is using military terminology for good reason. I am reminded of my own military training. Every member of the military must pass through the gas chamber. We were (and still are) exposed to what civilians would call mace in order to learn how to operate in that environment. We would exercise in what civilians would call harsh conditions – rain, snow, sleet, extreme heat – all in order to learn to ignore our bodies’ warning signals and continue to push forward. As a military policeman, I was required to go through riot control training. Part of that training involved our forces forming a battle line, shoulder-to-shoulder, facing the unruly crowd. During our training “confrontations” we would encounter real-life responses from the rioters – bricks and rocks being thrown at us, physical hand-to-hand struggles, name-calling, the works. But the worst thing was to stand there statuesque while someone spit in your face. Yuck! Again, it was all part of our military training – teaching us to ignore our feelings, control our emotions, and continue to push forward in the accomplishment of our mission.

Paul identifies those who war – as a verb, not as a noun. To war is to actively fight against an opposing force. To war is to define a righteous mission, to pinpoint an objective, then to forcefully put down any resistance that would attempt to keep us from achieving that goal. If diplomacy can’t be used effectively, then force must be employed. Hopefully it doesn’t take the full force of the entire nation’s military to achieve victory, but if it does, it does. Otherwise, the wise commander gathers intelligence on the opposition (numbers, weaponry, tactical position, etc), evaluates his own strength and abilities, then deploys the necessary resources to efficiently win the battle.

We all can identify this situation when it involves other people coming against us. But what happens if your enemy turns out to be your own emotions, your own flesh, your own desires? How can you and I gain control over that which is within ourselves – that is a very part of us? How can I put down this uprising in my own soul? We turn, once again, to the words of Paul: “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” As therapists will tell you, the first step toward healing is the realization that you have a problem.

The Apostle Paul had much to say to the early Christians - much that still applies to us today. For example, he wrote that he actively buffeted his body in order to keep it under control. In other words, he mentally and physically beat his body up in order to show it who was in charge. This points us squarely to the practice of fasting. Fasting can be a total fast (no food & no water for a period of time), a partial fast (no food for a set period), a specific fast (no chocolate, no television, etc. for a period of time), or whatever. The ideal exercise of this type of fast would be to use whatever time you would have spent eating or watching television (for example) to pray, study God’s Word, meditate, or some other spiritual discipline. This applies to us today as much as (if not more than) it did the early Christians. This practice of denying the flesh is powerful if done properly.

I would propose to myself at this moment to go further. I will share with you what I would like to do with myself. It isn’t just enough to deny my body some pleasure it craves. That’s good, but it serves no purpose if done just for the practice of doing it. Instead, I need to dig deeper to discover the “why” behind whatever behavior I am fasting. For example, if I fast from eating sweets I need to ask myself, “What pleasure do I get from eating this unhealthy food? What voices in my head grow quiet when I satisfy them in this fashion?” This works for all vices and habits. Smoking is another one. It serves no healthy purpose to my body, so why do I do it? For some, it is (ultimately) a way to slowly kill themselves without the guilt of suicide. For others, it calms them down. For me, it always gave me courage (oddly enough). I recently heard someone say it made them feel manly. Huh. I get that. The same is true of drinking. The movies have romanticized alcohol consumption to where we see the leading man enjoying a scotch on the rocks or a martini and begin to see that as a standard of manhood. Sadly, many “Christian” men use sexual prowess to self-identify as a manly man. Christian women do the same (just for the record). Cursing and coarse language often gives the illusion of strength. Drugs offer an escape, a temporary sanctuary into which to escape the pressures of daily life. On and on the list goes.

Paul’s writing today challenges you and me to dig deep in our own hearts and minds, to identify those places we are lacking, weak, soft, or broken. Once identified, we need to pick one. Just one. Let’s face it, we probably won’t go straight from hell-bound heathen to halo-bearing saint overnight. It will be a process of sanctification, of cleansing, of repenting over and over again, of growth. Pick one thought that Satan likes to throw in your face: “You have already gone too far, it’s too late for you.” “You are fat and ugly, no one would ever want you.” “It’s too bad your mother didn’t abort you as a child, you are worthless.” I don’t know how he feeds your insecurity and fears, but you do. Pick just one. Then lay it out plainly before God in prayer. He already knows, of course, but it is important for you to know. Tell Him how you feel, why you feel that way (if you know), how it has affected your life, etc. Then simply grow quiet before Him. Allow Him to speak to you. Let Him breathe life and hope into you.

Remember, you are not alone on this journey. You are not the first to experience this feeling, and you sure won’t be the last. You are in the company of Noah, of Abraham, of Elijah, and of Jonah, just to name a few. Even Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane the night He was arrested, “Father, if it be Thy will, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not my will but Thine be done.” You are walking a road well-worn by fellow believers through the millennia. But you are not walking alone. Jesus walked it before you, and He is well-familiar with what lies ahead. He has promised to never leave you nor forsake you. Allow Him to come alongside you, to comfort you, to counsel you, and to walk you through the healing you so desperately seek.

Be blessed.