Dr. Ray Pritchard Christian Blog and Commentary

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Two is One, and One is None

  • Dr. Ray Pritchard
    Dr. Ray Pritchard is the president of Keep Believing Ministries, an Internet-based ministry serving Christians in 225 countries. He is the author of 29 books, including Stealth Attack, Fire and Rain,… More
  • Updated Mar 26, 2006

am writing this note a few minutes after 10 PM. By now the college group from Calvary should be back in Chicago. So I begin with a shout out to Josh and Leah, and to Stephanie (who called me Papa Pritchard and Marlene Mama Pritchard, which made us both smile), and to Jennifer, Denise, Christina, Jimmy and Joel. They were a ton of fun to have around for the weekend. They did what only the young in heart could do, leaving Oak Park early Friday morning, arriving here on Friday night, staying up late that night, spending all day Saturday here, building a bonfire last night, then driving back to Oak Park today. Just thinking about it makes me weary. But they seemed just as high-spirited this morning as when they arrived 36 hours earlier. They talked and laughed and spent time eating and exploring and sharing together pretty much nonstop. Marlene and I both commented on how quiet the cabin seems now that it's just us and Dudley.

This moring around the breakfast table, when Stephanie asked what book I was working on, I told her that I planned to write on Asymmetric Spiritual Warfare. That led to a long discussion about how Satan attacks us in multiple ways, that he rarely hits us head on, that he attacks from many directions at once, with the ultimate goal of discouraging us. And that led to comments from various team members about how they had been struggling with discouragement. From there we talked about the importance of sticking close to our brothers and sisters who are in the battle with us, that if a soldier gets separated from his squad, he's in big trouble. Joel spoke up and shared something he learned while serving with the Marines in Iraq. During his tour of duty he was stationed in Fallujah, scene of some of the worst fighting. His sergeant used to tell them, "Two is one, and one is none, and if you are by yourself, you're done." When the time comes to go to battle, you can't wander off on your own of you'll soon be in big trouble. But "two is one" if you stick together. And "one is none" if you don't. That's excellent advice for the spiritual battles we all face. Remember, if Satan can discourage you, he's already won the battle. Don't fight him alone. Stay tight with your brothers and sisters because two is one, and one is none when you fight against the enemy of your soul.

You can reach the author at  ray@keepbelieving.com. Click here to sign up for the free weekly email sermon.


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