by Glenice Mills
VICTORY! Stop and consider the power of this word. It has a lilt to it but also carries a weight. Victory: the more you say it the more victorious you feel.
How come we have lost the power of this mighty word, victory? Sadly we in the body of Christ, ones who should walk in victory so often succumb and bow to our circumstances, our unbelief and to negativity. When we do this we give access for the enemy and more importantly, null and void the power of the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary. We are the ones who should live and lead a victorious life, but this is often not the case. I am speaking to myself in this too. We equate victory to battle, and yes we are in a battle, and some of our battles are more vicious and intense. We can at times feel like our very lives are at risk, and wonder if we will come out the other side in one piece; or not. However, the truth is we are victorious, because our enemy was slain when Jesus went to the cross. We have the shed blood of Jesus Christ which means we can walk in the fullness of Jesus Christ. However we often do not do this as we can and should. I am reminded of an old song we used to sing : ‘Victory we have in Jesus Christ, Forgiveness because He was crucified, Deliverance, He has set us free”. Victory means defeating one’s enemy in battle or war. It is triumphing, conquering over a weaker power. So what do we need to know about walking in victory and what things do we need to look out for that would undermine this?
Firstly, for there to be a victory there must be a battle. We must know our authority and walk in it. It is easy to hand our authority over to the enemy, rather than rise up and take a stand. That is about choice: choosing to call on the Name of the Lord to come and deliver us, or bow to the lies and control of the enemy. If we have put our armour on, and we have chosen to walk righteously, then we can call on the name of the Lord and He will come to our rescue.
Secondly, we have to acknowledge we are on the winning side. In any battle there are winners and losers. We are not on the losing side, the enemy has been defeated. We have to know and believe this with all our being.
Thirdly, a lot of what we go through is preparation and training for and in the battles. Each time we overcome and break through, our authority grows. It is quite literally like gaining our stripes, and we get promoted in the Spirit.
Lastly, we have to look at our mindsets about the battle. If we go into battle thinking we are on the losing side, we will lose. To the degree that we have unbelief to the power of the deliverance of Jesus Christ, will be to the degree that we grow in our God given authority.
So what factors undermine our walking in victory?
NEGATIVITY: Perhaps one of the biggest hindrances to walking in victory is when we allow negative thoughts and attitudes to take rulership of our lives. It always starts with thoughts, and as these thoughts fester on the bad things: all the disappointments, the unforgiveness and loss of hope, negativity takes root, until it becomes a stronghold. This stronghold binds us and allows the door of negativity to take root in our minds and attitudes. The world and the people in it look grey, and before long we go around with the weight of the world on our shoulders. We are difficult to be around, and before long we affect everyone around and about us. At its worst we do not see the Lord in our circumstances and in fact give ourselves open access for the enemy to ride on our emotions. Confusion will come and before long we deny the power of the Lord. Unbelief takes hold and we lose hope. It is not living the victorious life!
DOUBLEMINDEDNESS: How often do we vacillate between faith and unbelief? One moment we are excited and full of faith and then when things aren’t going quite as we thought they would and should, we quickly bow to doubt. We live in this constant flux and become very double minded. Scripture says a double minded man is unstable in all he does, and we can easily see how that works in our lives. It is not living the victorious life!
FEARS: At the root of a lot of these issues is fear. Fear of failure is one of the main stumbling blocks stopping us coming into all we are called to. We see things from our narrow perspective, rather than from the big picture of what the Lord is saying and doing in our lives. When we fear failure we will be slow to take the steps of faith needed to bring in the new. Fear of man, and fear of success will also bind us, stopping us from walking in victory. When fear keeps us debilitated we will remain inactive and before long live a lesser life. The problem with this is we know deep down what we are supposed to do and if we give fear rulership of our lives we will soon feel guilty and find ways of justifying our inaction. It is not living the victorious life!
PERSPECTIVE: How often do we lose perspective when circumstances seem overwhelming? Emotions rule and before long we have lost our peace. We cannot make sensible decisions and easily bow to rash decision making, often resulting in a negative consequence. We lose sight of the Lord in our circumstances and end up doing what we think is best. It is not living the victorious life!
UNGRATEFULNESS: When we resent the circumstances we find ourselves in and have an attitude against those close to us, and often at a deeper level, against the Lord, we become ungrateful. Nothing seems right in our world and we harbour unforgiveness. We cannot give thanks for our circumstances, and it is difficult to praise and worship the Lord. It is not living the victorious life!
CONFUSION: It is not easy to find a way forward when it seems everything is out of our control. The truth is the Lord wants to be Lord of our lives, however, we can think we can do things better. When we have important decisions to make, and our thoughts become all consuming it is easy to become overwhelmed and for confusion to reign. We cannot think clearly. Crying out to the Lord is the only remedy for confusion. He will make a way forward for you and bring you to a place of seeing things clearly. Don’t allow confusion to rule your thoughts. It is not living the victorious life!
There are many things that stop us walking in victory. In many of the Psalms David has a lot to say about victory. It is because he learnt it because of the many hardships in his life. The truth is everything comes back to our relationship with the Lord. The things of this world can easily derail us from walking in the Lord’s authority. We have to recognise the tactics of the enemy that would rob us of our peace. We are more than conquerors and we have to learn to have that mindset. If we think we are a victim, we will act and behave like one. Self will always want to have it’s way, and lusts will always pull at us to have what appeals to the flesh. The truth is walking as a Christian is difficult, and there are times when we need help from our fellow brothers and sisters. We need to stand with and support one another. We cannot do it alone. We were never meant to do it alone. Above all else, we need the Lord’s help. David learnt this as he faced many trials. He was not always popular, however we see many times over where the Lord came to his rescue. Don’t forget, our testimonies are actually what define us, and our testimony is always about the Lord’s victory in our lives: the times He came through for us against the odds, when things seemed impossible.
That is walking in victory!
Psalm 60:18
Through God we will do valiantly,
For it is He who shall tread down our enemies.
This verse is repeated in Psalm 108:13.
David needed to know that it was the Lord who would deliver him from trouble, he could not rely on man, only the Lord.
Psalm 118 speaks of David’s battle and how the Lord was the only one who could deliver Him. Can I encourage you to read this powerful Psalm?
Psalm 118:14-17
The Lord is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation.
The voice of rejoicing and salvation
Is in the tents of the righteous;
The right hand of the Lord does valiantly.
The right hand of the Lord is exalted;
The right hand of the Lord does valiantly.
I shall not die, but live,
And declare the works of the Lord.