WE MUST CHOOSE TO FIGHT (1 Timothy 6:12 AMP) Fight the good fight of the faith in the conflict with evil]; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and for which] you made the good confession of faith] in the presence of many witnesses. Imagine stepping blindly into a boxing ring with a professional fighter. Imagine being untrained, unknowledgeable of your opponent's strengths and weaknesses, and the boxing game itself. Imagine being knocked down repeatedly due to the inability to see your opponent, his movements or his tactics. Visualize receiving punishing blows and bruises, but not knowing how to fight back defensively or offensively. You are in the fight of your life and unable to fight back Unfortunately, this is the reality regarding many of God's people today. As believers, we can no longer live by religious cliches. The first being, it is God's will for me to be like this. Next, it is God's will for me to go through this. Lastly, it is God's will for me to live like this. Many of us use these cliches as crutches (excuses) not to take responsibility for our own actions. The Bible states that it is not God's will for any to perish but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). If it is not God's will for any to perish, then why will people still perish and go into eternal judgment (Rev 20:11-15, Rev 21:8)? The answer is CHOICES They chose not to repent The Bible states in 2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV that "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land." However, if we fail to humble ourselves, pray, seek and turn from our wicked ways - is it God's fault for not hearing, answering, forgiving and healing? No, the blessing (the healing of the land) is based upon a condition of correct CHOICES (humbling, praying, seeking and turning) God gives us a CHOICE between life and death as well as prosperity and disaster (Deut 30:15-20). We Must Choose to Stand Up and Fight the Good Fight of Faith and use the tools and strategies given to us So let us begin our spiritual journey thru the Word of God. First, we will search the Scriptures to find out What the Bible Says About our Adversary (his strengths, his weaknesses, his origin, his methods, what he can and cannot do). Next, we will focus on three areas of demonic influences cited in Scripture; Spirit Forces of Wickedness (the Adversary's hierarchy and some demonic names), Strongholds (ungodly influences to the human mind) and Bitter Roots (ungodly influences to the human heart). We will examine how these influences form Vicious Cycles in our behaviors and family lineages. Next, we will search the Scriptures to Clearly See who is on our side and what the Bible says about our Lord and Savior (His Authority, His Dominion, and His Supreme Rule). We will then examine the Scriptures to discover Who We Are as believers. What are our rights and privileges as citizens of the Kingdom and the children of God? Finally, we will examine some of these ungodly Influences by Name (their effects on man, their manifestations, their patterns and their goals). We will cite examples from Scripture and learn how various Biblical characters either overcame these influences or yielded and fell to them. We will then analyze each example to recognize its' operation in our lives and how to overcome them by prayer, self-examination, confession, and declaration of God's Word in Jesus' Name.