"I'll punch him for you"

If you don't yet know it, I'm going to let you in on a little secret, my friends are better than yours. It's not up for debate and frankly, even if it were, you would lose. I have incredible friends and some of those friends come with incredible built-in friends, also known as their kids. And today, I had the privilege of hanging out with two of my favorites.


We went to the park for a picnic, played on the playground, walked some trails, and then headed out to Mickey D's for some ice cream (or cookies) and more play time on the playground there.


As I was watching them play on the playground, I heard this from the very top of the slide:

Sissy: "Christian, did that boy just call you a name?"
(I couldn't see or hear what Christian said, but I did hear Sissy's response to whatever he did.)
Sissy: "Cause if he called you a name, I'll punch him for you"

No punching actually went down, but as I retold this story multiple times today, I was reminded that Jesus, like Sissy, is willing to throw some punches for us if we ask Him to. He's already won the fight, but if someone is calling us names, He's quick to remind us that He is on our side and if we ask Him to, He's ready to throw some power punches.

He's asking "Is that temptation pulling too hard?", "Is anxiety stealing your peace?", "Are those lies defining you?" And He's following it by "In this world you may have trouble. but take heart- I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). He's saying that He's already won the fight.

I love that. I love that I am on the winning side and that what is over my head is underneath His feet, but so often, when I'm in a "battle", I don't remember that He's right there waiting for me to call His name. So instead of asking the King of Kings to step in, I start swinging punches all by myself.

And let me tell you, I punch like a girl in these types of fights and as a result, I do a whole lot of losing. But I'm learning that if I would just stop my "punching" and trust that not only is God on my side, but He is fighting for me and He never fails, then I realize that even when I, in my own punching, lose a "battle", my God has won the war. And even if I am knocked to the ground thousands of times, and there's hardly any fight left in me, nothing can change the fact. After all, "The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." (Exodus 14:14) I am so thankful for a God who is willing to fight for me. I am so thankful for a God who is able. I am so thankful.

"When stormy seas are way to hard for me to handle, and at times when I'm losing faith, You told me all I have to do is call on Your name, You're fighting every wave."