As you fight, don’t be discouraged when the battle gets especially fierce or when you suffer a setback or two. Instead, remember that God has entrusted you with a mission in the very places where the fighting is hardest. The stronger the opposition, the greater the victory when you overcome it. And the more powerful the temptation you resist, the greater the blow you strike against Satan’s forces when you stand firm.
          Even when you stumble or fail, your failure isn’t the end of the story. Keep the bigger picture in mind. Satan may wound you or even take you captive for a season, but remain faithful to the Lord. Don’t let Satan convince you that he is winning or that God has abandoned you. God is still victorious, and you can trust him to rescue you. He will not abandon a single person who loves him and remains faithful to him. When you pray, seek his forgiveness, and ask for his help, the Lord can restore you, heal you, and put you back into service.
          In the meantime, remember that the outcome of the war is already settled. A good soldier doesn’t judge the entire war by his own victories and defeats; he looks at the larger cause. For the Christian, that bigger picture is good news: Jesus is victorious, and his cause will ultimately prevail. Satan is doomed. So when your own setbacks discourage you, step back and remember the big picture. The fight of faith is a battle in which the final victory belongs to Christ.
Don’t fall into a victim mentality.
          Many wounded people come to Jesus and to the church looking for relief from their pain and healing for their damaged souls. And that is good. Jesus does heal sin-sick souls and wounded spirits. But he doesn’t heal you just so you can remain in a hospital bed. He raises you up, strengthens you, trains you, equips you with the full armor of God, and sends you back into the world to do something meaningful for him. The church is not meant to be only a hospital for the wounded; it is also an army of people who have been restored and are ready to serve.
          Don’t become so comfortable thinking of yourself as a patient that you never become a soldier. Every military force needs medical units for those who are wounded, but it also needs troops who are healthy and ready for action. The fighting force should be larger than the medical unit. An army is in serious trouble when the wounded and helpless greatly outnumber those who are ready for duty. If everyone remains sick and broken, we have to ask whether the healing process is actually working. And if leaders are satisfied with keeping people dependent rather than helping them grow strong, we have to question whether they are leading well.
          The church is God’s army, and most of its people should be growing stronger in the Lord and becoming ready to serve, not remaining weak and helpless and depending on pastors simply to get through each day. Perhaps there was a time when some churches were too quick to reject sinners or abandon those who were wounded. But many churches today have swung to the other extreme. They have come to accept a situation in which people remain broken, dysfunctional, and trapped in sin year after year.
That isn’t what God calls us to.
          The goal of the church should not be simply to find someone who is hurting and help them feel better. Healing matters, but it is only part of the mission. We are also called to confront the strongholds of sin, stand firm in faith, and advance the kingdom of God. We are meant to be healed so that we can become strong, equipped, and ready to serve. The church is not merely a place where wounded people recover; it is a community of restored people who are learning to stand, fight, and live victoriously in Christ.