Today is a Good Day to Die! or Slippage in the Advent of a New Tradition

So, today I Googled popular battle cries.

I suppose I could say it was research for something I’m writing but really it’s just the kind of thing I do on a normal day. That’s the type of girl I am – somehow when God was mixing the formula for me in His lab, He started with sugar but then opted to go heavy on the spice, leave out the nice and throw in a dash of Xena, warrior princess.

I suppose that’s because He knew He was sending me into battle.

So, here are a few of the best battle cries I found:

“From my cold, dead hands!” (Charlton Heston, at the 2000 NRA convention)

“This is where we fight! This is where they die!” (King Leonidas in 300, rallying the Spartan troops to battle)

“Over? Did you say over? Nothing is over till we decide it is! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!” (Great cry but it’s actually attributed to Bluto, John Belushi’s character in Animal House)

Seriously, my favorite is from Star Trek Next Generation and is Worf’s Klingon call to arms “Today is a good day to die!”

I need this battle cry. This whole advent of a new tradition is a reminder to me of what a battle it is to remain close to the Lord and make time to pull away and send time with Him in the age of distractions and entertainments and competing demands. I was humming along just fine until I put in a long work-day on Thursday (thirteen hours), a long shopping day on Friday (lots of quality time with my family – none with the Lord) and a long cleaning-errands-entertainment day on Saturday (Hey, It’s A Wonderful Life is a long flick!). All worthwhile activities but I left no room for quality time WITH the Lord.

This morning as my lapse came into focus during worship service, I beat up on myself – you know the sort of thing you do – but God reminded me that the battle is right here, right now. There is nothing I can do about lost battles – days gone by, behind me now, confess and move on – but there is another battle and it is called Today.

Today is a good day to die – to self, to worldliness, to sin, to prayerlessness and powerlessness.

Today is what I have. Yesterday is God’s to sort out and tomorrow is only a maybe. Today is what I have to spend with Him, to pick up the weapons at my disposal and to forge on. I need to keep in mind I am only a foot soldier in this war – the battle belongs to the Lord.

Sound like dramatic and unseasonal thinking? Not at all. Take a read through Revelation 12. It tells of the dragon that waited for the woman to give birth to the male child who will rule the nations with an iron scepter. There was war in heaven. The child was snatched up to God and the woman was taken to the desert until her time so the dragon went off to make war against those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.

In verse 11, there is praise for those who overcame “by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.”

When Jesus came to be Emmanuel – God WITH us – He brought the frontlines with Him. When we join His family, we are given a new life and a flak jacket. There is a war raging until we are all safely home. Jesus says in Matthew 10:34 “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Put that on a Christmas card this year, I dare you.

See, the peace He brings is reconciliation with us and God but there are those who don’t want that to happen and they will resist all efforts to further God’s kingdom on earth. But Jesus has overcome and we can be over comers as well.

Today is a good day to die! Not the usual call to devotions, I suppose, but it’s what works for a girl like me when I’ve gotten off track.

What gets you back on track?