“The Courage to Stand”
Anita McGinnis
When I was a young girl I had to have a special retainer made for my mouth to keep me from sucking my thumb, yes it’s a little embarrassing, and it gets worse. Each time I would go to the orthodontist to have it checked, I would make it through with flying colors, until the doctor would have my mom come back to see the progress. I would be standing between them with mouth open, however, in seconds I would be sliding down between the two of them. I would just faint! I could not stand for just a few seconds, my fear and weakness would take over!
As Christians, we are told to take bold stands for Christ. Ephesians 6:13 says, “Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” As Paul closes his letter to the church of Ephesus, he repeatedly tells them “to stand.” So why was this standing so important?
Paul may have been writing from an up close and personal illustration as he was in prison and likely chained to a Roman soldier. In the day of battle, Roman soldiers were to stand their ground and not retreat. The Greek word for stand in verse 13 means to “withstand” or “stand against.” In a military sense of the word, it’s the idea of holding a critical position while under attack. Paul’s readers would’ve understood this illustration, because they knew the importance of standing their ground while under attack. If under attack it was crucial the soldiers stand their ground together and not break rank, in doing so their legions were considered virtually invincible. They created a “phlanx”, or a better way to explain it, is like the shell of a turtle. The soldiers would use their long shields to cover them on all sides and above. However, if one soldier decided to retreat, the entire legion was left in danger of the enemy getting a foothold. Likewise, the one who retreated was in danger as well, because the enemy had an open target.
Our basic responsibility in fighting against the devil’s schemes is to stand our ground and not retreat. In doing so, we don’t give the devil any new ground to work and build on. Unfortunately, we have times, like me in the orthodontist office, when we do get weak and scarred, and we faint! We are unable to stand our ground for the cause of Christ. When we give in, break rank, we give that ground over to the devil to do what he pleases. Perhaps our Christian bubbles are safe places to be, however, when we retreat to these places instead of standing our ground we are no longer an influence for Christ. Rather, we are a conduit for Satan to take over even more ground. In his book, Grace-Based Parenting, Dr. Tim Kimmel explains the statistics and research that shows when our nation really began to become secularized. The author dates it to the 1960’s and 1970’s. To summarize the author, he describes Christians instead of standing their ground as retreating to their safe-havens. This is when the development of Christian schools, home schooling, and Christian businesses of all kinds from bookstores to radio and television programs to Christian cruises began to take on a whole new course, that of catering to Christians. Dr. Kimmel writes, “What’s ironic is that the “secularization” of the non-Christian community has risen proportionately with our withdrawal from it. The more options the Christian community created for itself, the more our general culture moved toward secular thinking, the corollary being that the less we need to engage the lost world around us, the more it will be left to its own devices,” . Instead of Christians standing their ground, a critical position, they retreated to their Christian bubbles. One has to wonder what our nation would look like had we stood our ground in some of these battles. I think of Jesus and his ministry on earth. Did he retreat to the safe places? Did he find where could be comforted and not challenged? Did he find those like him to always be around?
Not long ago, I was posed with just such a situation. Would I stand my ground, or would I retreat? As I was in a store I frequent often at the entrance to our neighborhood, I was shocked to see the “Sports Illustrated Swimsuit” edition placed very strategically on the end of an aisle. There it was for all to see and behold, and all at eye level. Typically magazines of this type are positioned in the magazine section up high. It was at this moment I had a decision to make, would I stand my ground and ask that they remove the magazine with the half nude model on the front, or would I retreat to my safe place? With some fear and trepidation I asked to speak with the manager. I explained to the manager that I did not think this represented the company well, nor did it need to be in clear view for all ages to see! Then like that, the manager said, “Thank you for saying something, I only needed one customer to complain so that I could move it!” You see “Sports Illustrated” had paid to have their magazine on some prime ground, but it only took one slightly scarred mom to stand up and stand her ground and ask for it to be removed.
We all have choices each day as to whether or not we will stand our ground or simply retreat. Believe me; I’ve done my fair share of retreating! However, I want to have courage and boldness to stand on the ground God has given me and fight the battle so that “after having done everything,” I will be found standing! I’ve given Satan a big enough playground already!
