Have you ever found yourself trying to be diligent, focused, and resolved in your spiritual walk, but somewhere along the way discipline starts to wane, life (and the world) gets crazy, and you find yourself either giving in to things you didn’t use to or getting drawn in to petty, insignificant matters?

Or maybe you’ve observed people you respect and admire who appear to engage in things, conversations, entertainment, positions, or relationships that make you question your own stance on what’s right versus wrong, leaving you feeling confused and weary of trying to keep up with it all.

Paul spends some of his final words in 1 Timothy 6 giving instructions to Timothy. It feels like he must have known Timothy might start to feel overwhelmed at all he needed to be vigilant about, especially when he observed people getting caught up in the trivial, distorting the truth, or engaging in pointless arguments that distracted them from what really mattered.

So Paul made it plain and simple for all of us:

Flee from evil.

Pursue righteousness.

Fight the good fight of faith.

Take hold of what’s eternal.

It’s a direct charge to be on full alert; to be intentional and mindful in the way we live. It’s just not worth it to get caught up in the things the world touts as being all-important if those things draw us away from living a life worthy of God’s call.

There’s a better way to live.

It’s found in learning to run away from and not take any part in what doesn’t edify, build up, and strengthen our faith, and instead pursue what’s truly good: righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.

We are called to be genuine, steadfast women of God who are set apart and called to a higher standard and a more excellent way. As we apply the truth of the Word of God in every area of life, we’ll find ourselves fueled by the Spirit of God with renewed and resolved determination to do everything He has called us to do.

I love how 2 Corinthians 10 reminds us that although we live in this world, we don’t have to sink down to the same standards the world engages in, and what’s more, we have the Word of God that gives us everything we need to fight this fight of faith and live a life of obedience and maturity.

The world is unprincipled. It’s dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn’t fight fair. But we don’t live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren’t for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity. – 2 Corinthians 10:3-6, The Message

The fight of faith is a good fight, but it is still a fight.

It will take tenacity, guts, resolve, and determination. It’s a fight to not let the enemy take ground in our lives or in our families. It’s a fight to do what’s right in God’s eyes even when others say it’s old fashioned. It’s fight to hold fast to the truth of the Word of God in love and kindness, without watering it down or creating our own interpretation as a means to excuse sin.

But friend, we are in good company. We are not alone in this fight of faith. Not only are there many believers cheering us on here and now, but as Hebrews 12:1-3 says, we are also surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses who are cheering us on to run our race with perseverance and courage.

As we live our lives with our sights set on Jesus, we can be confident we’re on the right track. Philippians 4:12-14 (NLT) says:

I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

We don’t have to make it complicated. We just need to keep the main thing the main thing and hold tight to what really matters – the eternal things, not the temporary things. But we have to be vigilant about it. Hebrews 2:1, AMP, says, “… we ought to pay much closer attention than ever to the truths that we have heard, lest in any way we drift past and slip away.”

We need to be sure we are anchoring our hearts and our hope in Jesus Christ and His Word with everything we’ve got. If we don’t, we won’t even realize when we have drifted from His ways.

Stay steadfast and keep a firm grip on righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness. Let’s not get sidetracked, slip into bad habits, or emulate the world’s habits or trends so much that we drift away the way God has called us to live.

Flee from evil. Pursue righteousness. Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of what’s eternal.

You have what it takes, my friend, in Jesus’ mighty name!

With love,

Andrea

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Andrea Howey is a hand lettering artist from Dallas, Texas. She uses hand lettering to share her heart and the message of hope, truth, and faith found in the Word of God. Her aim is for people to be encouraged in heart, strengthened in faith, and above all, point people to know Jesus personally and intimately.

You can find Andrea and her beautiful handwritten words of encouragement on Instagram at: @andrearhowey.

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There’s still time to get your tickets!! Natalie Grant & Love God Greatly are teaming up for one VERY special night of praise and worship THIS FRIDAY, September 22 at Lake Pointe Church in Rockwall, Texas!! Trust us when we say that you won’t want to miss this power-packed ministry night! And get this: for each ticket purchased, concert goers will receive a FREE Love God Greatly Bible study journal! How amazing is that?!

*A special invitation to GIVE BACK: For those in our LGG community who are not within traveling distance or simply can’t make it to the concert, would you consider GIFTING a concert ticket to a very worthy cause? We’re giving YOU the opportunity to purchase concert tickets for our amazing friends at a local women’s and children’s services ministry here in Rockwall. Your donated ticket(s) will give one (or more!) of these precious women a unique worship experience, plus their very own LGG study journal to take home with them! What a sweet way to still be able to participate in this exciting night AND get more women around the world in God’s Word. THANK YOU for helping us reach and dream BIG in order to make Him known!

Learn More: http://lovegodgreatly.com/natalie-grant-concert/

We’re in Week 4 of our 1 & 2 Timothy study! You can find our women’s and corresponding kids’ journals here:

Women’s journal: http://amzn.to/2uPvmOS (aff)
Children’s journal: http://amzn.to/2ub0VAA (aff)

Angela Perritt

Angela Perritt is the founder and director of LoveGodGreatly.com, a nonprofit online Bible study ministry reaching thousands of women in over two hundred countries around the world with God’s Word through their translated Bible studies. She and her husband live in Dallas, Texas with their three daughters. Angela is passionate about God’s Word and believes one woman in God’s Word can change a family, community and ultimately a nation. Her greatest joy is to encourage her children and others to love God greatly with their lives one day at a time. You can connect with her on Instagram.