Fight
True Confession: I'm 32 and I've never been in a fight. I was sucker punched during a rundown during a 14-year-old baseball game. That's about it.
As I've grown and experienced more of life, I've found myself in more conflict. Sometimes the conflict is personal. Other times it's about the way we ought to do things at church, in our family, or in our country. When you're working with people conflict is inevitable.
This week I read what Paul wrote to Timothy, "...here are my instructions for you, based on the prophetic words spoken about you earlier. May they help you fight well in the Lord's battles." (1 Timothy 1:18, NLT) Those last three words struck me: the Lord's battles.
According to Paul we're in a fight. This isn't a passive faith. But Paul also delineates between two kinds of battles. There are battles that are God's and battles that are our own. The last kind aren't worth fighting. I was left to ask myself, "Whose battles am I fighting?" When I find myself in conflict, who is this really about?
God fights battles to keep families whole. He fights for those that are far from him. He fights for the down-and-out, beat-up, and discarded. God fights to redeem the city and culture. He fights to be known and represented well. Those are the battles of God.
Unfortunately, upon further review, I found in my life some battles that didn't meet those qualifications. They mostly revolve around my personal preference. "Why do they do things like that?" "Why wouldn't you agree with me about everything?" "Why do you have feelings when all I see are facts?"
The Gospel is worth fighting for and I'm often distracted by personal beefs of temporary value. Here's to a wake up call from 1 Timothy. Let's fight well the battles of the Lord that have eternal value.