Kingdom Warriors

When Daniel faced the enemy, he did it in the power and wisdom of God alone. He had no idea what kind of battle awaited him, save for the whispers and rumors from terrified soldiers. Whispers and rumors will always surround those who have set their faces on doing God's will and confronting the enemy. There will always be something to hinder, scare or outrightly stop you in your tracks; that is, if you let it. The battles must be fought – they will not just disappear – and the enemy must be driven away, but what kind of warriors ought we to be?

In order to be effective in any battle a warrior must not only know the enemy, he/she must also have a strategy for winning. This means knowing every tactic there is in the book and being thoroughly prepared so as not to be caught off-guard. Strategy means we have not only made provision for victory, we have also envisioned what to do in the event that there is loss. We have looked at both sides of the coin and worked out the pluses as well as the minuses. Strategy is practical not just for combat situations but also for any other crisis in life. However, not just any strategy will do; it's got to be the right one, the most appropriate for the current situation. A strategy used last year or in the last conflict may not work this time around because many things may have changed. Believe it or not, even the enemy does change! Remember when satan tempted Jesus in the desert? As soon as it was obvious he was getting nowhere with the Son of God, he quickly retreated but only so that he could re-group and return later with a different approach. Not that this would have moved Jesus, but the point is that we can never under-estimate the enemy at any given time. Our strategies must be fool-proof and sound enough to guarantee victory. How do we do this? Through wisdom – the wisdom of God.

"A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength. For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counselors there is safety."
Prov 24:5-6

How can we fight without wisdom? A battle without wisdom is lost before it begins. Wisdom is the voice that causes us to make the right decisions in warfare; decisions that do not compromise us or those around us. Wisdom makes our weapons sharper than those of the enemy.

The aim of every soldier is to come out on top no matter how tough the war is. One well trained soldier is worth more than five 'green' ones who fumble through the combat with no real chance of victory. Yes, there will be a lot of pain to endure and scars that remain but who said that the winner never suffers some measure of loss before victory? That's what makes the triumph even sweeter! The scars that Christ obtained on His head, hands and feet are an eternal reminder of the great conquest obtained through the cross. That should also show us that even when we feel beaten and bruised we should not give up; it may not be over yet.

Kingdom warriors also have endurance. They do not give up or retreat just because things look bad. Someone once said that the worst thing you can ever do in battle is to give the enemy your back (read retreat). The ability to withstand high levels of pressure and not cave in is a priceless gift that is needed in our times. It requires us to be able to envision victory through faith. It requires being able to see things from a long term instead of short term perspective. Our goals need to be long-term. Our strategies need to take on a long term perspective. We need to wean ourselves from the immediate gratification kind of thinking that is prevalent in the world today. We need to build internal strength that enables us to go through difficult times and not lose faith.