The very exercise of holding up the
shield and keeping the soul in watchings makes it strong for the battle.
If you do not exercise your soul in earnest prayer each morning, Satan
will likely catch you that day unprepared.
For the perfecting of the soul in the habit of holiness, you must exercise
yourself in inward acts of resistance. Keep an intense hatred of sin and
the devil; get where you enjoy a contest with Satan; glory in tribulation;
rejoice when you are persecuted; count it joy when you are tried and
tempted. Soldiers get so they love the battle, pugilists enjoy the
contest, and we should be where we love trials. We hate them, therefore we
love to conquer them; they afford us means for development, therefore we
welcome them; they deepen us into God and make us more like Christ,
therefore we hail them with joy. We hate them themselves, but in our
intense love for God and the privilege of exercising ourselves in his
strength we count all our trials joy. We rejoice in the midst of
temptation because we have the opportunity of displaying the strength of
our God.
But do not make the mistake of thinking that you are so strong in God that
the little evil thought, or the feeling of pride or impatience, or the
little act of intemperance, is of no consequence.
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