Bull In A China Shop

For the last three or four weeks I’ve been retreating within myself (on the inside). Outwardly, I’ve given the pretense of being “fine”. This has been the case since I’ve been accepted into a program at my church. In that time, I have either seen or heard that other friends were also struggling with something. Those friends were struggling because they were called to something greater. The enemy hates when we are called to do or be part of something greater for The Kingdom.

This morning I stood in church as the band began the praise and worship portion of service. This is usually where God speaks to me most. He has long spoken to me most through praise music. Today, I couldn’t hear Him. All I could hear was a loud clamor of noise rattling around in my head. I barely heard the sermon, but what I did hear started to quiet that noise a little. I was exhausted—mostly spiritually and emotionally—so I took a nap once I got back home.

I woke up after about an hour and forced myself to go to Cliffside worship. Once atop the cliff, I saw some friends from church, and spoke with them. I told Debra Collins about my struggles, and my bad head space. She prayed over me, but also prayed over those I mentioned who were struggling.

Once she finished praying she said to look at the enemy’s attacks like stepping into an attic. There’s low light and you can’t see that well. Before long, you walk into a spider web and it scares you. It takes your focus off your path. Prayer is like that moment of calm where you brush the web away, reorient yourself and start to see your path unfold before you. Then you can stick your elbows out and start knocking obstacles out of your way.

The devil’s lies are nothing. They have no power.

She talked of demons as looking like big, scary giants blocking your path. They’re really just ants ready to be crushed under your boot. I never thought about looking at the enemy and his demons as ants, and us as the boot. That’s exactly how we should look at them though. God’s awesome power makes them so.

As she was saying this, two thoughts came into my head. The first was a remembrance of my Haiti trip from 2017, where our group theme song was “The Enemy Is Under My Feet”. The enemy is the ant. We’re the boot. Not the other way around. Remember that when he’s trying to cause you to stumble.

The second thought was more of an image in my mind’s eye. I pictured a china shop, and a bull in it. I have often heard it said, “be a bull in a china shop.” I have said it many times myself. Never, before tonight have I thought of it in this respect. You and I are the bull. Satan and his demons and lies are the china. With God, we are able to be that bull. We are given incredible power to decimate the fragile and easily shattered china. He is the Father of lies, but we are protected and given power by the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. The enemy’s lies may seem powerful, but they are really nothing more than fragile china. All we have to do is realize (rectify between head and heart) that they are fragile, and the bull within us can easily topple them and utterly destroy them.

If you are reading this, and you have been struggling with attacks, remember that you aren’t alone. Remember that the enemy attacks when he’s scared. He does not want us to take big, scary leaps of faith. He will try every manner of subterfuge to have us dwell on the “scary”, instead of the “faith”. Ultimately, he’s already lost. When Christ died, he descended into hell. He fought the enemy in his own realm. He defeated the enemy so completely that the enemy will forever be under foot; under boot. Remember that when you struggle. Don’t struggle alone. Don’t feel that you have to. God gave us community so that we could hold each other up, pray and fight for each other, and remind each other that we are dearly loved sons and daughters of the King of Kings.

 

If you’d like any prayer, or have anything to say or add, please leave a comment.

 

Thank you, and may you never forget that you are the boot and the bull.