Good morning, world. Things are looking pretty good from the front porch of my farm in Virginia today. Every day is one step closer to wintertime, and every day the “backdrop” from the front porch is gloriously different. Before God turned the lights on this morning, a herd of deer was gathered around the oak tree in the front yard in the dark. They were getting their acorn “fix”—a pre-winter treat that will help them fatten up for the colder weather when edible foliage is hard to find. This morning, everything looked muted outside, and mostly everything blended together EXCEPT for this lone deer in the hay field. Despite having grown a thick winter coat of a color that helps it blend in with the winter foliage, it still stands out like a sore thumb. It isn’t nearly as hidden as it thinks it is. The longer I watched that deer “hiding” from danger, the more it reminded me of man. The Spiritual war is raging, and life on this earth is getting more troubling every day, that’s for sure. But here’s the problem. Instead of facing the enemy head-on…instead of squaring our shoulders, lifting our chins, and confronting the one(s) who LOOK scary (but have no power over us), MANY are making plans to go “off the grid” to hide away from it all. Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. There is no hiding place away from the Spiritual things, and there’s no fighting a spiritual war with weapons of the flesh. It’s not the time for cowards, and it’s never the time for man to take on the nature of animals. It’s time to face adversity head-on. It’s time to Declare the Name of Jesus Christ like never before. It’s time to Love the lost ones and to pray for souls. It’s time to stop hiding. Isn’t that the way you see your Journey of Faith, too?

The perilous times the Bible warns us about have begun, and the birth pains are not as far apart as they used to be. There is a sense of URGENCY in the air, and it’s pretty clear (at least to me) that God is Preparing His people. I’m pretty sure He’s doing a little “sifting” from His Throne as He Prepares to separate the sheep from the goats, and some who will hear “I NEVER KNEW YOU!” unless something changes in their lives before they take their last breath. I don’t have all the answers, but I do know this: God doesn’t need intellectuals…He needs Warriors who are willing to Fight this Spiritual war with Spiritual weapons. He wants His people CONFIDENT in His Word and Fearless because they KNOW it so well. He wants the ones He died for to be Willing to live for Him. How in the world can we be a Witness for Him if we’re hidden away off the grid somewhere as far away from mankind as humanly possible?

God has no tolerance for cowards. Revelation 21:8 says, But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” God wants His army to be Confident in the fact that “greater is He who is in me, than he who is in the world”. But the cowardly…the ones so determined to hide away from “the government” – the ones who believe it’s possible to live anywhere on earth “off the grid” – have been deceived by the one much more dangerous than any government man has ever known. We can run, but we can’t hide from this Spiritual War no more than that lone deer can hide from the hunters. We either Armor up (with the ARMOR OF GOD) and face it head on like the Victors we were born to be, OR we die like cowards. The choice is yours.

Throughout my lifetime, plenty of people have commented on my “bravery,” but I’m not Brave at all! I Know that I’m surrounded by Protection 24/7, and I don’t allow the liar from Hell to tell me otherwise. I’m Redeemed. I’m Santified. I’m a child of the Greatest Commander-in-Chief of the entire world! Why would I hide like a wussie from a Spiritual War that spans from one end of the universe to the other? Why would I choose to live in the woods and stockpile food just for me and my loved ones when I could be Front and Center in this world that is starving for Hope, Freedom, and Peace that ONLY comes by way of Faith in Jesus Christ?

I was born for such a time as this, so you won’t find me trying to hide in the field like this cowardly deer – you’ll find me on the Frontline instead. You won’t find me relying on guns to get them through – you’ll find me using my Spiritual Sword that makes any weapon of “mass destruction” look like a water pistol on a playground. You won’t find me trying to hide my food from all the hungry ones around me because I Know that the Bible says that “The righteous will never go hungry” and I believe it. Besides, I serve the God of Multiplication – and if my food runs low because I gave so much away, I Know He’ll multiply it all over again. The devil is a liar, and that liar knows that he has absolutely no power or control over me or my family. We can’t be deceived by him when we Know the Truth so well!

If you’re inclined to be a coward living in the woods somewhere, I pray it works out for you, but I wouldn’t count on it. You can’t hide from this kind of enemy, and God sees your every cowardly move. If you ever get tired of hiding from something you CAN’T hide from, reach out to me. I’ll show you the way to Spiritual Bootcamp, and before you know it, you’ll be on the frontlines with me!