Daily Devotionals

In every army there are good soldiers and sloppy soldiers. There are soldiers who win battles and conquer enemy territory, and there are soldiers who fail and lose ground. I want to be a good soldier for the Lord, don’t you? I want to drive the devil back and advance the kingdom of God.

The Apostle Paul was that kind of soldier. He was a man of victory. He triumphed in every circumstance. The devil tried to stop him again and again with persecutions, beatings and trouble of every kind. But Paul kept right on marching in victory, preaching the gospel, healing the sick, working miracles and building the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Eventually, Paul was put in prison and in chains. Imagine how terrible the conditions in prison must have been in those days! No doubt, the devil expected that to stop Paul—but it didn’t. Instead of lying down and feeling sorry for himself, Paul used his time in prison to pray and write letters to minister to people. He didn’t know he was writing letters that would become a major part of the New Testament. He was in prison, but he was also in the Spirit. Prison didn’t even slow him down.

It was during this time that he wrote 2 Timothy 4:6-8, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course….”

Aren’t those wonderful words? I want to be able to say words like that when I come to the end of my earthly life. I want to know that I have fought the good fight—and won!

Someone might say, “Well, Gloria, that was the Apostle Paul! He was special. We can’t all be like him.”

Why not? We have the same Savior Paul had. We’re filled with the same Holy Spirit. We even have the words he wrote to Timothy, his precious son in the faith, just before he departed this life—instructions that Paul knew would enable Timothy to be a victorious soldier of the Cross just as he had been.

So, yes, you can be a victorious soldier. You can conquer enemy territory, push the devil back, and advance the kingdom of God.

Speak the Word

I fight a good fight. I finish my course. Therefore, there is a crown of righteousness laid up for me. (2 Timothy 4:7-8)