How This Chapter in the Battle Changed Me
Reflections on Part 2 of 5 in the 'Standing Firm in the Battle Attack'
There are moments when something burns in your heart and you know, you just know, you’re meant to say yes. That’s what this series was for me. Standing Firm in the Battle wasn’t born out of brainstorming or strategy. It came out of a deep ache I’ve felt watching believers, myself included, get worn down, isolated, confused. We are in a war. And too many are fighting it with the sound turned off.
I didn’t want to just write about the battle, I wanted to invite others who have lived it. Who still live it. Who know what it is to be tested in the dark and yet stand in the light of Christ. That’s what these six voices bring.
Not theories.
Not platitudes.
But blood-earned truth.
I wrote this, from the middle of my own wrestling:
“You weren’t meant to strive for victory. You were meant to live from it. Rooted in love. Grounded in truth. And when the storm hits, you’ll still be standing. Because your roots go deep. And greater is the One who lives in you than the one who prowls around outside the camp (1 John 4:4).”
I needed to remember that. I still do. Maybe you do too.
When I reached out to the others, I didn’t just want strong content, I wanted the real thing. People who wouldn’t shrink from the hard, but who would help light the way.
Steven Galatioto, who writes at Faithful Habits, laid out the armor of God not as a checklist but as daily formation. His section reads like a field manual for the soul. What stuck with me was this:
"Victory comes not from avoiding battle, but from standing firm—armed, prepared, and steady in Christ."
Steven’s grounded approach makes spiritual warfare less intimidating and more do-able. Because it is do-able with Christ.
Cole Nielsen took us into the subtle seduction of sin and the glory of God’s rescue. I read his section twice. Slowly. Because this part, it’s true in a way most people aren’t willing to say:
"Sin is lying at the door; and its desire is for you” (Genesis 4:7). It’s not an abstract concept—something you slip into by mistake. Sin is an active force courting you as an earnest lover. It longs to draw you into its den—luring you into its soft sheets where it will take hold of your desires.
That’s a vision of holiness not based in guilt, but in beauty.
Dr. Janet Abadir doesn’t mince words. She wrote her portion like a surgeon: precise, necessary, and full of grace. This part stayed with me:
“Our greatest skill is repentance. We release our will and our thoughts and humbly accept God's will and God's thoughts. We can only know God's will and thoughts by studying His Word every day.”
Janet’s perspective reminds us that spiritual attack isn’t always loud. Sometimes it’s just stubbornness that refuses to yield.
Eric Mattie, who writes at For1Glory, wrote like a brother who’s been through fire and came back with a word for the rest of us. His section called out the quiet erosion the enemy loves most:
“The Enemy will leverage problems that we face to steal our joy in Christ, kill our trust in the Lord, and destroy God’s glorious reputation.”
That line haunts me. It speaks to the profound loss we experience when we surrender territory to the enemy.
And then there’s Boma, who writes at The April Journal, whose voice feels soaked in scripture and intercession. Her portion felt like standing beside someone at a midnight watchtower:
“This is not a fight where we can choose when to go in or out. It is a fight where we need the whole armor of God—not to win—but just to be able to stand (Ephesians 6:13–17).”
That’s the voice of a warrior who has seen the worst and still believes the best about our King.
This whole thing, this series, this article, isn’t for clicks. It’s for the one who’s barely holding on.
The one who loves God but feels worn out.
The one who forgot what armor feels like.
This is for you.
Let these voices remind you. Let them help you remember who you are. Whose you are. And what is still true even in the fire.
Let’s not just talk about standing firm.
Let’s do it.
Together.
-Dan
Read the series here:
Part 3 of 5: Publishes on May 13th.