There’s a war going on–and it’s not in Iraq. It’s going on inside of me. A conflict between flesh and spirit (Galatians 5:16-26). And I have be honest that flesh has won more battles than I care to admit. But here’s the crazy part–until I started this Lenten Compact ‘fast from violence’, I didn’t have a struggle with violence. Now, I see violence everywhere and I’ve become aware of how much I allow it to be a part of my life.
Last night, I watched “Prince Caspian”. I thought, “No problem here. CS Lewis was a believer.” The whole thing was epic battles led by children with swords that were taller than they were and killing the bad guys to free Narnia. Ah, glorious war for a good cause. Pre-Compact, I wouldn’t have even thought about it, but now–a total different story. We package violence and sell it to young children. Aslan didn’t win; the flesh (via Hollywood) did.
The bottom line is that the flesh will always win until it is challenged. And though the struggle really intensifies when the Spirit enters our lives, is is only by the presence of God’s Spirit that we will become people of God’s love, joy and peace. It is the Spirit that gives life, and we will only experience victory over the flesh and death as we walk with the Spirit.
Tongue on Fire 