Fast 40: Practicing the Ancient Spiritual Discipline of LentSample

G. K. Chesterton once said, “We were all born upon a battlefield. That is, we were all born in a beautiful but bewildering place.” In a sense, Christianity reveals who the enemy on that battlefield is and helps us recognize our allies. But the most obvious point is this: the battle is real, and we must choose whether we will be victims or victors.

Paul exhorted his spiritual son, Timothy, to “overcome every form of evil,” and, as the book of Revelation makes clear, there are only two kinds of Christians: the overcomer and the overcome.

We are called to be a Church Militant—to resist, attack, and destroy the works of evil. Though that may sound “negative” (like Lent itself), it has a deeply positive result. Lent is a season of spiritual warfare. As we fight the world, the flesh, and the devil, we experience “righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:17).