I believe a common strategy from the enemy is to make us so tired from the continual spiritual battles we face, that we give up just before we experience the victory or breakthrough. I once actually heard the enemy say to me, “I’m going to make you tired.” Over the last few years I have spoken to people who told me that they feel tired, and the Lord helped me understand that the tiredness they are feeling is not actually physical, but rather spiritual in nature. We may all go through times where it feels like we are just facing one spiritual battle after the next without any breathing room. Or, it feels like the battle we are in just keeps going, and despite our efforts, the victory seems out of reach. Perhaps you can relate to this? I certainly can.

The good news is that we can overcome this, and the bible tells us how.

In Judges chapters 6-8, we read about Gideon and his 300 men who fought against the Midianites, and prevailed. In this battle, Gideon and his men blew their trumpets, and when they did so, the Lord turned the Midianite army against each other, so that every man’s sword was against his companion throughout the whole camp. In this battle, 120,000 Midianite men died, and the remainder of the army fled to Beth Acacia. The bible then tells us that Gideon and his 300 men pursued the remining Midianite army and their 2 kings, but they became exhausted along the way.

When Gideon came to the Jordan, he and the three hundred men who were with him crossed over, exhausted but still in pursuit. Then he said to the men of Succoth, “Please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me, for they are exhausted, and I am pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of Midian.”

Judges 8:4-5 NKJV

When Gideon’s men were exhausted, he knew what they needed, and therefore asked the men of Succoth to give them bread (or food), because food strengthens our bodies when we feel weak and tired. I believe there is a spiritual message here for us. When we feel spiritually exhausted due to the spiritual battles we face, we need spiritual food to strengthen us. Bread in Scripture is a reference to the written word of God. In other words, we need a message from the Word of God to give us strength, so that we don’t give up before we experience the victory Jesus has for us. We need spiritual strength so that we can not only endure, but ultimately prevail against the enemy and overcome.

I’d like to share a Scripture with you which confirms that the word of God gives us spiritual strength.

And wine that makes glad the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread which strengthens man’s heart.

Psalm 104:15 NKJV

We know that physical bread cannot strengthen a man’s heart, therefore this Scripture must be referring to the written word of God.

This spiritual strength can look different for each of us, based upon what the Lord knows we need. It could be a Scripture that gives us a boost of faith. It could be a word of encouragement. It could be a promise. It could be a new battle strategy, or a Scripture with which to fight against the enemy’s attack. As a loving and caring Father, the Lord knows what we need, and He knows how to get a message through to us. He will help us, because He wants us to prevail and overcome the enemy. Thank You Jesus!

I have asked a dear friend of mine to share her testimony with you, because it is just such a beautiful example of how the Lord helped her to overcome a long standing battle she was facing.

Rolene’s testimony:

First of all I want to thank the King for His continuous love, grace, and mercy upon me and my family’s life.

I used to get severe allergic reactions to absolutely nothing. I used to wake up in the mornings with eyes watering, nose running, my ears and throat will itch very badly, then my face will start to itch. Some mornings I would stand up and my throat will be inflamed because of my immune system constantly attacking things that are not there. After I would get an episode like that my whole body would then feel as if I just ran a marathon. It caused me to be tired all the time and more irritable towards my family, which was not good.

It started getting worse to the point where I started coughing and my chest felt like it was closing up. One morning after waking up with my chest feeling tight, I was coughing, my ears and throat was heavy, I heard the devil say to me, “No I won’t back down, no I won’t back down.”

Now if I can remember correctly, I had been trying to resist this attack for about 3 years – if not more. The number of times my faith took a beating is countless. I think the best picture to give is that of a rollercoaster. In this time of resisting and fighting against these symptoms I was experiencing, I was at stages of “Enemy you don’t stand a chance against the power of the Lord,” to, ” Why is this happening to me. Maybe this is my cross I have to bear for the Kingdom” kind of a mindset. I have cried at the Lord’s feet, begging Him just to heal me, just to wake up the next morning with the exact same symptoms.

I knew what I was experiencing was spiritual, because at times when my faith was “boosted” I would pray for my ears to stop itching and I could feel the itch going away, but the other symptoms stayed. People have prayed for me, I have fasted and I have even started to talk to people in the body of Christ about this. I have gotten books from people and explanations from books other people read which in actual fact contradicts the word of God, but I was desperate and was looking and asking God if there was still sin in my life or maybe people I needed to forgive. Let me tell you the enemy has a field day when in desperation we look for answers in the wrong places. I went down the rabbit hole too many times out of desperation and ended up not wanting to fight anymore.

I was exhausted having to fight this every single morning, and then I have to recover the whole day from the exhaustion just to have it again the next day. I have given up many times and then the Lord through His Spirit just pulls me back to standing.

The one morning I was crying at the Lord’s feet, sobbing to be more exact, I just couldn’t take it anymore. I actually started believing the whole “generation thing” without me even knowing it.
The Lord mercifully gave me a dream that night. It was my whole family on my dad’s side (my dad suffered from allergies his whole life) and we were standing in a kitchen, and I left the kitchen to go to another room and I locked the door. The lock was a double lock in a shape of a cross. In the dream there was an open Bible, and I was fighting and resisting but I knew in the dream it was against allergies.
The next morning I was so excited, still experiencing allergy symptoms, but excited because I believed the Lord showed me that the “generation thing” was cut off by the cross. But nothing changed.

A week or so later I was at His feet again, crying, asking, begging, and He gave me Isaiah 43:7, 14 and 18, which says:

[7] Everyone who is called by My name, Whom I have created for My glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him.”
[14] Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, The Holy One of Israel: “For your sake I will send to Babylon, And bring them all down as fugitives— The Chaldeans, who rejoice in their ships.
[18] “Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old.
Isaiah 43:7, 14, 18 NKJV

In that moment I realized the Lord wanted me to actually fight back, like in the dream and stand on His word and here I am just glad He showed me that the “generation thing” is broken. Silly me.

In that moment I got so angry at the devil I just started addressing him saying something in the line of, “Satan, I have been created for the glory of God, I have been created by Him, perfect. He is my Savior and you cannot hold any former things against me.” Then I started speaking to the cells in my body, I commanded them to stop this nonsense and stop fighting things that are not there. I told the cells in my body that they were formed for the glory of God, and I told them that they will no longer remember the things of the old, nor consider them because I have been saved by Jesus.

The next day I woke up, and I was in total shock. I kept waiting for the symptoms and nothing. I was in such amazement, having energy the whole day. Not having to blow my nose often, not scratching at my face ears and throat. I was in such shock and amazement of what the Lord did, even to this day, I try to thank Him every morning when I wake up.

Every now and then the enemy still tries, but all I say is, “Not today”, then I pray those things again and address my cells in my body and my immune system then it instantly disappears.

I really hope it brings encouragement to you fighting a battle that you feel is never ending. May you consult the King to give you bread or a sword depending on how angry you are at the enemy, to overcome your battles and that you get filled with His word. 

Thanks so much Rolene.

I’d like to offer a word of encouragement to anyone who is feeling spiritually exhausted: Seek the Lord and ask Him for spiritual food to strengthen you for the battle you are facing. Ask the Lord to sharpen your discernment and make you sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit. I know that God is good and that He is faithful. I know that He loves you so much and that He will give you the strength you need. He is with us every step of the way to secure our victory in Christ. Thank You Lord!

Blessings in Jesus mighty name