Christ With Coffee On Ice - this was never supposed to be easy

Episode Date: September 9, 2026

Hey y'all ! Welcome to another Wednesday with CWCOI ! In this week's episode, our host, Ally Yost talks about how it is a fight to follow Jesus. Not a fight where we need to find the strength within ourselves, but a fight where we are learning to fully lean on Him. We can find hope in the reminder and promise that there is a finish line at the end and that is eternity with Jesus. "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." Philippians 3:13-14 _____________________________________________ ☆ PRE-ORDER 'LOVE THAT LASTS' HERE: https://allyyost.com/en-usd/pages/book ☆ OUR NEW MERCH IS LIVE! SHOP AT: https://allyyost.com ☆ Timeline is offering a 15-day trial of the Mitopure Resurfacing Exfoliator for just $22 at ➤ timeline.com/coffeeonice ☆ Start your free trial at ➤ shopify.com/cwcoi ☆ MY BIBLE (code 'ALLYYOST' at checkout) ➤ https://hosannarevival.com/products/nlt-life-application-study-bible-edinburgh-theme ☆ TUMBLER LINK ➤ https://allyyost.com/products/cwcoi-glass-tumbler-black _____________________________________________ Connect further with us ! TikTok ➤ https://www.tiktok.com/@christwithcoffeeonice  Instagram ➤ https://instagram.com/christwithcoffeeonice  _____________________________________________ Connect further with Ally ! TikTok (2M) ➤ https://www.tiktok.com/@ally_yost  Instagram ➤ https://www.instagram.com/ally_yost/  ShopMy ➤ https://shopmy.us/allyyost  Pinterest ➤ https://www.pinterest.com/ally_yost1/_created/

Hello, everybody. Welcome to another episode of Christ with coffee and ice. I am your host, Al Yost. It is a joy and honor to be here with you guys today. Happy Wednesday, everybody. I am so excited for today's episode. And I will say, I'm so excited for today's episode, but I pray that I can do this well because I feel like what we're talking about today can have a lot in it. And I think it's a really rich topic that I genuinely think it could be a series talking about the reality of what it means to be a Christian. And I think we've covered a lot on this podcast about what it means to be a friend to Jesus and to allow him to be a friend to us and to fall in love with him and to remember the basics and the simplicity of the gospel,

which also can be so complex because of how simple it is. But how simple it is that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and has become the cornerstone, had become the sacrifice to make us right with our Heavenly Father. And the relationship that we get to have with Jesus through that and the relationship that we get to have through the Holy Spirit. And I've loved talking about all of those things on the podcast. But I think one aspect that we haven't touched on a ton, and I really want that to be this episode is that as much as there is so much joy and freedom and there is resurrection through Christ and Christ crucified and there is opportunity for us to have a clean slate and to follow him and there's so much freedom in following Jesus and joy like in ways life does get

better following Jesus, but also there are certain aspects of life that get harder once you have committed your life to Christ and you've said, okay, I am now making an allegiance with God and I am no longer living for the world. I'm no longer living for myself. I'm going to live for Jesus. There are new struggles that come with that. And I think that for the first three, few couple years of my journey with Jesus, I really, really, really was in the honeymoon phase with him. And in a lot of ways, I still am. I love him so much. But the first couple of years, I mean, I really was just obsessed with Jesus. And it really was like that like puppy love first love. Like it makes me emotional because it's just the best feeling. And in a lot of ways, I still adore.

him, adore him that same way. That will never leave for me. And I pray that it doesn't actually. But I think one thing that has gotten really real for me is that I have signed up for a fight. This is a fight. Being a Christian is a fight. Living in this world that is broken is a fight. There are a lot of things that there's resistance that we feel. There are a lot of things that come up against us. It could be spiritually. It could just be life-lifing, right? But there are things that we now have to learn through the Word of God and how Jesus teaches us and, you know, even incredible people that set examples like Paul, who we're going to refer back to of some things that Paul said about fighting the good fight. But the Lord also teaches us resilience and how to fight and to keep

fighting and to keep pushing because the truth is is when we sign up for this it's for the rest of our lives and it's a commitment that we have to learn how to stay steadfast in and i think that the honeymoon phase for me in the first couple years of my journey was the it absolutely sustained me but now i believe god has me entering a season where i have to learn another kind of level of sustainability and resilience and he's kind of you know teaching me how to have thicker skin spiritually emotionally because it's just what we need to endure this life that is hard and gets very heavy at times and there is an aspect too where you know i'll use myself as an example as i always do but before i really started to, you know, follow Jesus and give my life to him, I wasn't a threat to the enemy.

And it doesn't mean that the enemy, you know, I wasn't on his radar because clearly I was. There were a lot of ways that he was trying to influence me in the opposite direction of the truth, which is Jesus. And there are plenty of things in my life. There, like, there are things I look back on and I'm like, that was literally so demonic, you know? And so it's not that I wasn't on his radar. I think all of us are, no matter where we're at, whether we're with Christ or not. Like, the enemy's goal is to kill, steal, and destroy. He's just envious of the fact that we are loved and adored by God, no matter what. We are created in his image. And at the end of the day, God wants all of us. He is jealous for all of us. And so anyone that God is jealous for,

the enemy is also going to be jealous for because he just wants everything God wants. And his goal is to just destroy. And so it's not that I wasn't on his radar then. And now all of a sudden I am. But I was in a position where like I was less of a threat to him for sure. Because I was I was already under all of this influence. I was I was already believing so many lies and false belief systems about myself, about my purpose, about, you know, life in itself, like I was so deceived already that he wasn't too worried about me,

you know? And now that I found Jesus, and that in itself, like just one soul being saved, all of heaven rejoices over. And that in itself, like just me seeing the truth and no longer being blind. I'm not talking about all of this. I'm not talking about, oh, and look at me, I'm spreading the gospel, like it, me being saved in itself was enough for the enemy to go, uh-oh, because it's not what he wants. Then yes, of course, then there's more that comes with that, right? Where then now that we're saved, there is a domino effect where when you've experienced the goodness of God, whether it's a podcast or not, it doesn't have to be a podcast. But like you're going to go out into the world, in whatever format that is, wherever you are in life, you know. But you're going to go

out into the world and you're going to tell people about that goodness you're going to tell people about that freedom hopefully right i mean when you're dead for so long spiritually and you are now brought to life and and your world has color when it used to be really dull or gray like you're gonna tell people about that you know and so the truth is is like when we shake hands with god and we say okay god i want you we are also now signing up to have an enemy. And the enemy was always an enemy, okay? He was always, he was always against us. He's never going to be for us.

But there's a, there's another level of like, all right, I'm signing up now when you've decided to walk with Christ. So that's me teeing up our episode today. Okay, we're going to talk about the good fight. And we're going to talk about what that looks like. we're going to talk about how God teaches us to endure the good fight and the hope that we have in this fight and in this life that we are living here on earth and what the reward really is on the other end of all of this right what is the whole point because if we're going to fight a good fight what what is it that makes it good and also what's on the other end where's the finish

line so we're going to talk about all of that but before we do I just want to acknowledge that we do have our Christ we do I have a different Bible with me today, which I've actually had this one for a while. I've just never brought it to the podcast. This is also by Hosanna Revival. Is she not so gorgeous? This stunning leather Bible and it's huge. It's so much bigger than the book. Look at how thick she is. Because this is their life application study Bible. And so on the inside, it has all of this extra commentary, which I love. and every so often I will open this Bible up, especially because I kind of have Bibles like throughout every little corner of my home, whatever. I just, they're everywhere in case you never know.

You never know. And so I, this one I have kind of as like a decorative piece at the same time downstairs in my living space. And so as I was spending time with the Lord downstairs, I just didn't want to go upstairs and you get my Bible. And so I used this one. And I was reading some of the commentary in it and I would love to read it to you guys I think it'll be a really great way to like kick off this episode but we're going to be in the book of philippians and this is our brother paul who is speaking to the churches at that time but then also us today and I will be reading from it but the great thing about this is it's not going to be any different than the translation we typically always read it is still an lt isn't it like come on rooted

and established in love. It's, I am such a fan of Husana. And we'll never stop talking about how amazing they are. And if you're curious, if you'd ever want to shop their stuff, if you ever want to get a Bible from them, they also have beautiful journals and planners and they're all very cutesy and wimsy and girly and just stunning, just beautiful. Um, I have a code with them. And it is just my first and last name. It's Ali Yost. So you can always use that at checkout. You are more than welcome to save a little bit of money using that. And then we have our coffee on ice. We have our coffee today and our glass tumbler. And then we have our Jesus on the back. And yeah, I'm excited to get into today's episode. Let's just get into Philippians. If you guys have your Bibles with you,

you rock. You literally stink and rock. Break out your Bibles. We're going to be reading a little bit of Philippians. And then I would like to read some of the commentary. Okay, let's start in Philippians Chapter 3. I'm really proud of you guys. Thank you for being here today. I think this episode's going to be really fruitful. Okay. Chapter 3, verse 1, it says, joy in believing, the priceless value of knowing Christ. Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. I never get tired of telling you these things, and I do it to safeguard your faith. Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil, those mutilators who say you must be circumcised to be saved, for we who worship by the Spirit of God are the ones who are truly circumcised. We rely on what Christ Jesus has

done for us. We put no confidence in human effort, though I could have confidence in my own effort if anyone could. Indeed, if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts, I have even more. I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin, a real Hebrew, if there ever was one. I was a member of the Pharisees who demand the strict obedience to the Jewish law. I was so zealous that I had harshly persecuted the church, and as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault. I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ is done. Yes, everything is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord.

For his sake, I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with Him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law. Rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God's way of making us right with Himself depends on faith. I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead. 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. Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things. If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain to you. But we must hold on to the progress we have already made.

Dear brothers and sisters, pattern your lives after mine, and learn from those who follow our example. For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ. They are headed for destruction. Their God is their appetite. They brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth. But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives, and we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like

his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stay true to the Lord. I love you and long to see you, dear friends, for you are my joy and the crown I receive for my work. That's so sweet. I love Paul. Okay, let's keep reading into chapter four. I am just loving this. This is now verse two, actually, of chapter four. Now I appeal to Eudia. And Sintechi, please, because you belong to the Lord, settle your disagreement. And I ask you, my true partner, to help these two women, for they worked hard with me in telling others the good news. They worked along with Clement and the rest of my coworkers, whose names are written in the book of life.

Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again, rejoice. Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember the Lord is coming soon. don't worry about anything instead pray about everything tell god what you need and thank him for all he has done then you will experience god's peace which exceeds anything we can understand his peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in christ jesus and now dear brothers and sisters one final thing fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right and pure and lovely and admirable think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me. Everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. How I praise the Lord that you are

concerned about me again. I know you have always been concerned for me, but you didn't have the chance to help me. Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. Even so, you have done well to share with me in my present difficulty. Okay, so that was all of chapter three and about half, almost all of chapter four. And I just want to stop there because I think everything that Paul is describing in these couple of chapters is something that I think could really tie into what we're talking about today,

which is the good fight, which is that it is a fight. And it is a fight to follow Jesus. And it's not a fight where we have to strive of getting any strength from our own. Because just as Paul said in chapter four, where he said that he's, honestly, it wasn't that he ever needed anything because he's now learned how to live off of everything or nothing on an empty stomach or a full stomach because he can do everything through Christ. And so I think it's obvious that my goal in this episode would not be to encourage us to find the strength within ourselves. I think that to have the strength to endure the fight that we are signing up for is also learning how to lean on Jesus all the time for that strength. Like if this is something

that's going to take all of our energy and it's going to be something that we are going to have to endure until we get to the other side, then Jesus has to be our strength. Some of the commentary that's in my Bible underneath these two chapters is it refers back to Philippians 313 through 14, which Paul is using the metaphor of a race in these verses and training. that we are to focus all of our energy towards winning the race. And the goal is living the Christian life demands all our energy. We can forget the past and strain to reach the goal because we know Christ promises eternity with him at the race's end.

Okay, so when we go back to Philippians 312, I just want to read it as it is. It says pressing toward the goal, 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 brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it,

but I focus on this one thing for getting 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. So Paul in these couple of verses is describing our life with Christ, our dedication to the Lord, like going through this journey of life with Jesus as a race to press on, to endure. There's another translation that says, forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.

And that word straining, I think, is worth highlighting. But a simple definition is straining is stretching forward with everything you have toward the goal in front of you. And if we remind ourselves, okay, we know that Paul is encouraging us to endure, to run this race looking forward. We're not looking at the past. We're keeping our eye on the prize, right? We're staying focused.

But I focus on this one thing, he says, for getting the past and looking forward. to what lies ahead. And what lies ahead at the end of this race is receiving the heavenly prize for which God through Christ Jesus is calling us. And I'd love for us to talk about that prize, what that even is a little later on. But Paul is encouraging us to run this race and to give it everything that we have. But I don't, when I think about God's character, though, he obviously also encourages us not to strive, you know? And so when we think about giving God everything that we have, what does that mean? Because I don't think that that means now we are going to be living in a constant state of emotional or physical exhaustion, right? That we're just striving and we're reaching and we're stretching and we're trying. I think that when we are encouraged to give God everything we have in this race, it just means full surrender. Like the things that you're giving are the same things that Mary gave at his feet, which was the most. expensive perfume she had, which was, you know, wiping his feet with her tears and her hair.

The reason why there's so much significance with Mary deciding to wash Jesus' feet with her hair was culturally at that time. In a Jewish cultural setting, adult women and particularly married ones generally did not present their hair loosely in public the way women commonly do today. Hair and its presentation were connected to modesty, respectability, and appropriate public behavior. So there were parts of a women's appearance that were considered private and weren't ordinarily displayed intimately in public. So to have your beautiful hair displayed in public, especially for an adult woman who was married, was not really a thing. So wearing the hair covered, bound or otherwise modestly arranged, communicated. to the world, to the public, respectability.

So Mary, in that moment, she's having dinner with Jesus, and there's other people in the room too, okay? So we could read this today and be like, that's not really a big deal, but at the time, everything she's doing is like countercultural. It's not a common thing to be doing, okay? Even just with the first act of her taking an extremely expensive perfume and pouring it on Jesus's feet,

then she gets down at his feet. And instead of reaching for a towel or, you know, a cloth of some sort. She uses her own hair. So that would require her bringing her hair down to his feet and likely loosening it if it had been bound or put up or covered. And that's what actually makes this scene so startling. And in that act, I think it's clear that Mary was like, I give you everything. I'm giving you my everything. She is taking something associated with her personal beauty and respectable public presentation and using it to perform one of the humblest possible acts of service, which were washing feet that were filthy.

Because the truth is, you know, they were walking around and there was lots of dust and dirt, whether they were wearing sandals or barefoot, I mean, their feet are dirty. People traveled dusty roads in sandals. Washing feet was a low status work at that time. So her hair, which is associated with beauty, femininity, and personal presentation is being used to clean Jesus's feet, which are dirty, dusty, and the lowest part of the body. And so what Mary is essentially saying in this act is even what I would ordinarily protect and keep presentable is worthy of being used at your feet. Like I think that there's also like dignity in that too, that she's willing to just give to Jesus. She, in that act, as simple as it could sound to us where you're like, okay, yeah, she washed his feet with her hair and she poured an expensive perfume.

But like that, it was so much more than that. She was giving Jesus her everything. So when Paul says, forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead and we look into the word of what straining means, which is to essentially give our everything. Our everything is our full surrender. I think that the only way we will be able to keep pushing, and going forward and focusing on what is ahead is by continuing to give God our everything and surrender everything every day. Another point that Paul makes in Philippians chapter 3, and this is between verses 13 and 15, but Paul is encouraging the Philippian Church at the time, but also us, to follow people who know how to endure. And so what he was saying in those verses, he was essentially saying, follow my example and pay attention to those who live accordingly to the pattern we've given you.

Paul never is encouraging people to, you know, he's like, use me as an example. You know, follow me and do the things I do in an arrogant way. It's in a way where he's like, hey, I have had to endure. I've had to press. I've had to fight. and so if there's anyone to learn from, you are more than welcome to learn from me. Or follow the people who have proven to have that same fruit and to live according to the same patterns that Paul was living. I think that another truth to all of this too is that we were never meant to endure this fight alone, right?

I think that that's what we're doing today. I think that that's what we do here on the podcast is we are in this together. And whether that's lifting each other up virtually in the comment section, but I think more importantly, we need to be lifting each other up in real life. Like, we need community. I think that this is a great example to the fact that we need each other and the body of Christ is meant to operate together so that we can lift each other up and keep each other strong and to learn from each other.

Like the truth is is that we need to help each other endure the hardships of life. And when we face resistance, when we face hardships, when we face spiritual warfare, when we face the ugliness of our own minds and resisting our flesh and our flesh being crucified and we're going through the fire and we're being refined and God is teaching us, like I know for a fact speaking from my own experience of learning, I'm still learning, how to endure this life with Christ is I have needed people. I have genuinely needed people around me. I have needed life being spoken over me.

I've needed to be reminded and I've needed to borrow people's faith and their strength. And I've needed to borrow their endurance and their wisdom, you know, of allowing people to speak into my situation who have also learned how to fight the good fight and have had to endure are really, really hard things. Without us having each other, it would be nearly impossible. So, yes, there is truth in what Paul is saying that we can do all things through Christ, but we need each other as well. Like we can't fight this good fight alone without Christ and we can't do it without each other.

Part of spiritual endurance is having people around us whose lives remind us. It's people, the other people who are around us where their life is a reminder to us to keep going, to keep believing, to keep obeying, keep your eyes on Jesus. Like, we are also to inspire each other and remind each other to keep going. Sometimes you need somebody further down the road who can remind you that what you're experiencing isn't abnormal. And I think that's been another aspect of what I've been experiencing lately is like, I have had to be reminded because it's new for me, some of the things that I've been walking

through, it doesn't mean that it's new in general. It doesn't mean that it's abnormal. It might not be normal for me because I have yet to walk through something like this, to face something like this, but I think looking to other people who have experienced similar things or literally the exact same thing gives me hope and kind of rests my heart a bit where I'm like, oh, I'm not broken. It's not that something's wrong. It's not that this isn't normal. This actually is normal and it's a part of the You know, suffering is promised. It's actually literally promised in scripture that it is a part of our journeys, is that it's not just going to get easy,

but there are challenges and obstacles that we have to learn to endure. I think another truth to all of this too is that obviously Jesus saves us freely. There is no cost to our salvation that he's already paid the price. He was already the sacrifice for our salvation. And so, yes, Jesus saves us freely. There was a cost, but there's not a cost from us to earn our salvation, right? But the truth is, is following him will cost us something. It'll cost us a lot, you know?

Salvation is a gift, but discipleship requires endurance. And so that's what we're talking about right now, is the fact that there is an endurance that has to be learned. There is a fight that needs to be fought. And scripture tells us to expect resistance. Sometimes I think that we interpret resistance as evidence that something has gone wrong. And like that's what I was kind of sharing a second ago where I think that I've been experiencing so much resistance in my life over the last few months that I'm like, is something wrong? Am I? This can't be normal. But then when we go back to scripture, it actually tells us to expect that. It's very much normal. It's very much normal. It's very much.

a part of the journey. And so I think that it's good for us to set ourselves up for success in the sense of like expecting resistance and expecting that it will be for the rest of our lives and that there will be no like graduation time in our journey with Christ where we just won't feel that anymore. There will be no point in our maturity with Jesus where it won't be a thing. But the truth is, is that resistance will always be a part of our story with Christ. The Christian life isn't merely about being rescued from something. It's about learning how to faithfully follow Jesus all the way home. I do think that Christianity is about being rescued from something. I was totally rescued from myself. The Lord rescued me from myself. He rescued me from the enemy. He rescued me from the things of this

world and what the world was forming me into. He rescued me. But there is another part of all of this that It's not just simply that. It's also that we are learning how to faithfully follow Jesus all the way home. We are learning how to endure. Jesus tells us in John 1633, he says, in this world, you will have trouble. Right? A lot of us know this verse. But let us be reminded of it today.

In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart, I have overcome the world. That verse almost contains everything we need to hear in today's episode. It's saying you will have trouble, but take heart, there's hope, because Christ has already overcome all of it. So Christianity doesn't deny the battle. Okay, the battle is there. Christianity tells us who wins the battle and who we are to keep our eyes on and who we are supposed to look to for strength. And let's talk about the fact that there is an aspect of a new kind of conflict that is introduced in our lives once we have decided we want to find. follow Jesus. I was kind of hinting towards that at the beginning of this episode, but a scripture that explains this really well is actually in Ephesians 2-1 through 3, and it describes our lives

before Christ as following the ways of this world and the ruler of the kingdom of the air, which is just the enemy, it's the devil. And then Colossians 113 says God has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the sun he loves. So when we have decided to switch sides in a way, okay, because this is like kingdom language, there are two kingdoms. One is far greater than the other. And I'm sure we know exactly which one is greater. But you've now changed kingdoms. Okay. You've changed allegiances. You've changed masters. You no longer are conformed to this world, but now you are allowing yourself to be conformed by Christ. And so suddenly, now you're resisting things you weren't resisting before.

Before Jesus, maybe you didn't fight lust. You followed it. You didn't fight pride. You justified it. You stood firm in your pride. You didn't fight things like unforgiveness. You just, you held grudges and you held on to unforgiveness. You didn't fight the approval of people, right? You lived for it. That was a version of me. I lived for that stuff. And so now that I'm living in a life where I am resisting those things and I'm not, I'm not living for those things anymore. Like I didn't, I wasn't fighting my flesh. I was obeying it. And then Jesus enters your life and he says, no, we're going a different direction now. We're turning around. We're doing a 180. And so that in itself creates so much friction. And another truth to this is there actually are multiple battles happening.

And I think that this is good to acknowledge because a lot of times we want to just label everything as spiritual warfare and it's not. It's not all spiritual warfare. Yes, you are a threat of the enemy. Yes, he wants to take down all the productivity that you've made in your spiritual growth and in your life with Jesus. And he wants to derail you for sure. But it's not, that isn't the only part of the battle. And we don't need to be giving him all the credit when there is resistance. our life because the truth is is there are there are three battles happening there are three things

that we are resisting it's the flesh which is perfectly said in galatians 517 the flesh and spirit desire what is contrary to one another and so our flesh wants things that is actually not good for our spirit the world which in romans 122 says do not conform to the pattern of this world and then lastly yes the devil ephesians 611 says put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. So yes, sometimes Satan is tempting us. Sometimes culture is disciplining us. Sometimes we're simply fighting our own flesh.

Not every difficult thing is a demonic attack, but every Christian is living within a spiritual conflict. And so I think what Paul is painting a picture of for us in these chapters of Philippians is that Christianity isn't passive. Like it is something that we need to train in, to run, to press on, to stand firm in because of all of these different battles and all of these different challenges that we face every day and the resistance that we feel and to not feel discouraged when those things come. I think another truth here too is that God isn't just here to make our lives easier, but he's here to make us stronger. And it's not just to put us through a bunch of tests, you know. I think that something to remember about God's heart, I mean, at least something I try to think about

is if God is having me go through something and he's trying to strengthen me in one area of my life, or if he's trying to strengthen me in a way spiritually, emotionally, whatever that looks like, it's probably because he knows that there are things that are coming in my life where I'm going to need that strength. God isn't just making us strong just for the sake of the story and the plot and, you know, He plopped us here on earth and, you know, we have this life that we have to live. No, there's a purpose to all of it. There's a purpose to the things that he's trying to strengthen you in right now. And to give up and to throw in the towel means that you are now giving up on a version of yourself in the future that needed that strength. And not even just yourself, but like, I mean, there's an aspect that I've been having a revelation about too where it's like it's not even about.

us like this personal growth the the things that god is doing internally for you in response to like all the things that could be happening to your life externally you know there's there's things that god is doing in you in response to all the things that are happening on the outside it's not even just about you like you have no idea okay we're talking about being a body and we're talking about how important it is to look to other people who have endured really hard times because It helps affirm you in your moment of feeling like, okay, I'm going through something. I've never had to go through this before. Is this normal?

Oh, it is normal because that person endured it. And that gives me hope because look at them. They gained all of this knowledge, fruit, intimacy with Christ. You know, there's so much that that was actually gained in that suffering. And it gives you hope. Who's to say that you are not supposed to be that very person for somebody else down the road? So, yes, by you waving your white flag, and saying, never mind, I don't want to do it, I give up, I'm throwing in the towel,

you're not only giving up on the version of yourself in the future that needed that strength, but now you are potentially giving up on so much more, you know, of being hope for another person or being able to give somebody wisdom and to pour that wisdom into a person, you know? Like, who's to say that you won't encounter somebody in the future, where because you actually have walked through the very thing that they are walking through? You have endured it. You were, you were weeping on your face on the floor. You were a wreck.

You were in pieces. You genuinely didn't know which way was up or down, but you were like, I just have to keep looking forward. I have to keep looking at Jesus. Now you're on the other end of that, because there is another end to get on the other side of that. You now have the authority to pray over that person and to encourage them and speak life over them because you've walked through it.

Like you're not praying these things over them out of a place of, it doesn't go in vain, you know, because you're like, no, I actually, there's authority behind the words I'm speaking right now because I physically walked it, you know? Like Paul had the authority to speak the things he was speaking at this time because he had endured so much. He had been through so much suffering already. You know, he's talking about how he had learned how to live off of absolutely nothing and everything. He had learned how to live on an empty stomach and a stomach that was full. that's him being like, yeah, I'm a credible source, not just because I say I am, but because there's grit behind it. He's got what he needs to back up what he's saying, okay? But you're also

not going to throw in the towel for anybody who could need your wisdom and your testimony. Like the thing is, it's not even just for us. The ways that God wants to strengthen us and teach us and show us how to have thick skin and show us how to endure and to stay faithful and strong. And here's the thing, we're not going to do it perfectly because even Paul himself, he was humble enough to say, hey, I haven't reached perfection, okay? I haven't figured it all out. I haven't even gotten there. Like, I haven't gotten to the place of which you are now, you know, you've perfectly figured out how to endure this. Like, no, he's like, I haven't done it yet. We're going to stumble and we're not going to do it perfectly. But there are things that God has in this for you, but also through you.

He wants to use this for other people as well. Romans 5 3 through 5, I think states that perfectly, where God actually tells us what happens when we face suffering, when we face resistance, when things get really hard in our walk with Christ. And it starts with suffering and then it actually leads to, because of that suffering, perseverance. And then perseverance actually is what helps mold our character and grow our character, which then leads to hope. James chapter 1 versus 2 through 4 actually similarly says something like that. That testing of faith produces perseverance and ultimately brings maturity. And another truth about resistance, y'all, and why we shouldn't be afraid of it or why we shouldn't see it as a signal that anything is necessary. necessarily wrong is that resistance can actually become the very environment in which endurance develops.

And so let us actually, I know it's hard, let us actually rejoice and be glad. That's hard. I know. I haven't been very good at that. I wouldn't say I'm at a place where I'm like, yay, resistance. I love it. I love it when it feels like nothing is going right. And no matter how, what's, I just feel this weird force. Like nothing's, everything's just hitting a wall. Oh, I love that. I love that feeling. No, I'm not there yet. But let us try to get to a place though where we pick the perspective of like, okay, I'm feeling a lot of resistance in my life. I'm seeing a lot of things that are quote, not going right. And I'm feeling really challenged. And I'm also feeling really exhausted, you know. But let us like, let us see that. as an opportunity for resilience to be born. Because I don't, it actually wouldn't make sense to expect that we will become more resilient and strong and, you know, become all of the things that we're becoming through Christ if it didn't mean that we were faced with challenges, if we weren't faced with resistance.

There'd be no point to resilience if there was no resistance. Actually, to become resilient and there being no challenges, what would be the point of having that? why would God ever need us to become resilient if there was nothing to be resilient against? I mean, it's silly. It's silly to think, oh, but God, just make me that and just take the bad. I don't want hardship, though. I don't want things to get hard, and I don't want things to feel confusing, and I don't want things to feel heavy and to not be going my way. Nope, sorry, the simple truth is that the journey is hard. God literally says to expect hardships

that we will face many troubles. Jesus said it straight out of his mouth. He said, you are going to face a lot of things that will be hard. But take heart, there is hope in me because I've already overcome everything. And so as long as you keep your eyes on me and the plans that I have for you in your life, you will be able to endure when resistance comes. Now, I think it is also important for us to acknowledge what fighting the good fight really means because I think that that sentence in itself can sound like really inspirational until we're like,

wait, but what does that even mean? Like, what does that mean, though? You know, it just sounds a little vague still. We're like, okay, we're going to fight the good fight and we're going to endure when things get hard and we're going to look at Jesus. But what? What does that even really mean? What is fighting the good fight really mean?

I'm going to start with this. I think first and foremost, fighting on an everyday basis can actually look a little ordinary. Like when we think about fighting the good fight and enduring in this life, it doesn't have to be really dramatic. I think that it could simply look like praying when you don't feel like it or maybe when you don't feel anything at all. Deciding to slow down and still open your Bible and your scripture, even though you want to just rush into all the things that you need to do that day. Or you want to just rush into being distracted or watching YouTube. I say that as some of you guys are watching YouTube watching this episode.

But yeah, it can be as simple as that where you're like, nope, I'm going to read. I'm going to sit down and read my Bible right now, even though all I want to do is watch a vlog and do my makeup and get ready for the day already. Because I'm stressed out about all the things I need to get done today. Believe it or not, that is fighting the good fight. Taking that thought that has come into your mind time and time again, captive again. is fighting the good fight. Deciding again when that ugly thought comes into your brain by taking it captive and saying,

no, I'm not believing this, I'm resisting it and I'm throwing it to the feet of Jesus. That's fighting the good fight, you guys. Fighting the good fight is saying no to temptation again. That same temptation that keeps creeping up into your mind that says, ah, but just whatever, you've been doing such a good job. You've been on such a good streak, you know?

You've resisted it the last like six times. And so whatever. Just do it this one time and then like you'll get back on track again. That voice is so enemy core. And you guys want to know how I could call that voice out like that. Some of you are like, wait, Ali, how did you sit? What do you mean? We're in this same fight together, you guys. Because I've had that same voice come into my head where it said, oh my gosh, but you've been crushing it. Like you've been doing so good. You've resisted this temptation for months now. Like, okay, what? what's one time going to hurt that's literally the devil um so i know that voice because it's tried to come for me too hey but you resisting that voice again is fighting the good fight choosing to forgive again

choosing humility again like choosing to look more like jesus again today is fighting the good fight. So all of those are examples of like, if you're doing those things, you're already fighting. You're already duped up. You're in the fight and you're doing it. You are fighting the good fight. A lot of those things can feel super ordinary, but like that is fighting. Another example, I actually just did this yesterday. I did this yesterday. So pat on the back to alley, getting in Christian community when you want to isolate. I've been so good at isolating lately. And yesterday I had a Bible study and I wanted to isolate even more. I was feeling so discouraged about my day and I was like, you know what?

I just want to a hermit and stay home and be in my pajamas. And I went to Bible study instead. And I was really glad that I did it. And did I feel like it was like the most life-altering Bible study? No. But I think the thing that made me so glad to why I did it was that I resisted that temptation of being like, you just want to stay home, don't you? You just don't get around other people right now.

Like you you had a hard day just stay home You know like that's the part that I'm celebrating Is like I was able to Successfully resist that voice and got in Christian community and got around a circle of women who love Jesus and talked about Jesus With them for two hours like I did that even though I didn't want to I fought the good fight you know and so the truth is is like the fight that we're talking about today can sometimes definitely be dramatic and it can feel super heavy but it's not always like this big dramatic spiritual warfare stuff you know the fight is continuing to tell god yes fighting the good fight is continuing

to to give him your everything which is what surrendering everything surrendering every ugly thought surrendering every fleshly desire um surrendering your feelings your emotions you know like when that's the one thing I think I have been challenged with the most is like I'm a feeler and I feel deeply. And so when I've been feeling resistance, oh, Allie is feeling and she's feeling a lot. And so I've had to literally be like, okay, God, I'm giving you all of my feelings right now because otherwise it's going to literally consume me and I feel like I'm going to explode. I think another win in this fight too is that you are simply still just standing. I think that in itself is enough to be like, Listen, I'm tired and I'm exhausted, but I'm still standing and I'm still giving God my yes. And that in itself is fighting the good fight. But like if you're still standing and you're still with Jesus, you're still winning. I really think that the simple truth too to all of this is like, if we are asking the question of like, okay, how do I fight this fight and how do I fight this fight well?

And how do I stay in this fight? I think the truth is it's just like increasing your dependence on God. That's the thing that's going to keep us in this fight forever is just continue. to recognize that you are fully and utterly and completely dependent on God. And there is nothing that you can do apart from him that will get you to the other side of this. Whether it's a particular situation that you're in right now or if we're talking about the entirety of our lives and like all the fights and battles and things that we have to endure over the span of our entire life.

But like whatever that is, it doesn't matter. we're going to need God more and more. And so it's actually just about accepting and surrendering that we just, we're going to need him more every day, like leaning in on the fact that we, we depend on God and God alone. He is the only one that we put our trust in. He is the only one that we believe will actually get us through this. Because he is. That's the truth.

That's what he says in his word. There's two more things I want to touch on. Okay, before we wrap today's episode. as we're talking about fighting the good fight, okay? Our expectations have been set. We now expect to fight. There is one. God promised it.

Jesus said it himself. So now we won't be surprised anymore when resistance comes, or we won't be so down bad on ourselves if we are currently in resistance saying, what's wrong with you? You're broken. What's happening? Something's wrong. Nothing's wrong. This is just the journey.

This is life. Okay? So expectations are set. And we also know what it looks like, even on an ordinary day-to-day basis of what it means to fight the good fight and to endure. And that really just looks like giving God your yes every single time you don't want to. Now, I want to talk about the pace of which Christianity is meant to be raced. Is that a sentence that makes sense? What I'm saying is, okay, expectations, how fast should we be running as we're running this race?

okay if that's the metaphor that we're using because it's the metaphor that's been used even in the Bible so we're going to go with that we're going to say this is a race that we are running how do we endure until the finish line how do we endure until for the entirety of this race so we don't get super burnt out because we sprinted for the first you know quarter of it and now we're exhausted we don't know how we're going to keep running because that's the thing is there's nothing wrong with being so on fire for Christ especially when you first come to him like if we have new believers listening, I just want you to know what you're in right now is the best. To be so on fire for Jesus because you were just freshly saved and you're like seeing everything for the first time, it's the best. But something we need to be cautious of is to not sprint so hard that when life really hits us in the face and you get to that part of the race where now it's happening, right? Now it's like, oh, we now have to learn how to endure these things because things are starting to feel

really heavy and hard, that we don't stop. And so the truth about Christianity is it is not a sprint, okay? We're not going to be running as fast and as hard as we can until the day we die because there's a good chance we're going to burn out. We just, we don't want to put ourselves in a position where we are sprinting when it was, when this is a race that was never supposed to be sprinted, okay? Because I'm sure we can only imagine the consequences or or the results of sprinting in a race that was actually built for steadfastness and just like longevity, right? Like finding that pace in our spiritual journey where we are, we are on a good, we're on a good jog, you know? And it may feel slow when we're in it. But that's the pace

that's going to get us to the finish line. The truth is, is it's possible to be incredibly passionate for three months and it's possible to have a radical encounter with God and it's possible to cry during worship every single time to throw everything away make huge commitments but scripture actually continually emphasizes something harder which is to remain which is to abide which is to persevere to endure to finish like that That's actually the thing that's harder. The goal isn't merely, did you start following Jesus? It's did you remain with him and did you finish?

That's our goal here as Christians, okay? Amen? Give me a high five. You guys got this. We're going to do it. We're going to do it. Paul also actually says in 2 Timothy 4-7, I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

I think another thing that will give us a lot of hope right now because I don't want us to look at like the fact that we're now going to be fighting for the rest of our lives and be like, wow, that's okay. We're just going to, okay, we're just going to have to face like really hard things forever. Yeah, there will be breaks too, though. God has mercy. You know, it's not going to be like that the whole time. And I know you've probably already experienced times where you're like, yeah, actually,

that was a really sweet season and I felt like I had a little bit of a break. And I wasn't like fighting for my life, you know? But so it's not going to be like that every minute of the day for the rest of our lives. But it'll happen again and again. But I think that another thing to have hope in is like we can fight because this isn't forever. This isn't forever. Like this life that we have, I don't remember which episode. Was it last episode or the episode before where we talked about how we are foreigners in this land here and that we are actually,

Paul said it in that scripture too. Didn't we just read it? IDK. We are citizens of heaven actually. Like that's what we belong to. And so this life here on earth is not forever. And so as much as it can feel that way when we're in it where we're like, wow, this is never ending.

And like this feels like it's just going to be forever. Like this is just going to be my life forever. It's not. And that's the reason why we can fight this fight with hope because we have Jesus who's already overcome the world and this world isn't even forever. He is. He's forever. So now let's talk about, okay, so we fight this fight and we do the thing.

We learn and we endure and we grow in character and person. perseverance and all of these things and we get to enjoy, you know, relationship with Jesus and there's joy in that and there's salvation in him. Thank God that our salvation is through Christ and we don't have to earn that. We have all of this. But like what is this end goal we keep talking about? What is the finish line? What is this prize? And also that feels weird. Like so Christianity is just all built on like a belief system of getting to a prize. Hey, I just want to disclaim to everybody who may not, if that's not clear to you. The prize is just Jesus. Hello. This fight that we are fighting and this race that we are racing is not to get some kind of gold medal at the end of this. Okay, it's not to go to heaven and there's

like a tier system of who's more, who's better than the rest and we get to earn our spot. That's not the prize. Okay. The prize is nothing materialistic or physical. Actually, the prize is just being able to live with Jesus in his glory for. forever and ever amen. That's the prize. That's, he is the prize. He's the whole point. So I don't care.

It's not, no, it's not about any kind of recognition or tear system or, or gaining any crowns. Now granted, God does say that he has treasures, many are your treasures that are stored in heaven. Sure. But like, I don't think we're really going to care when we are looking at Jesus. and we are basking in his glory and his love and his light. Like we are going to be encountering Jesus in a way that we could have never encountered

him here on earth because we would probably just explode from the inside out. It's too much. His glory is too big. His presence in all of him, in all his glory and all his presence, too big, we would turn to dust. So the fact that that's what we get to live in forever, sign me up. That's all I need. That's all I want. That is the prize, okay?

The goal, the prize, the finish line is. is Jesus forever in his home in heaven. We just get to be with our creator forever. And it also says in Revelation that there will be no suffering, no pain. We won't have to endure anything anymore. Because there will be no fight. The battle's already been won. We're going to have everything that we need in him.

And everything will be good. There will be no more evil. When Jesus comes back, wiping it. Everything that is evil will be wiped clean and sent to hell. And then we get to live in eternity with him in heaven. That's the prize. Hello? The prize is no more suffering.

So we will endure the hardships. We will endure the things that do not make sense in this life in the name of Jesus. Why? Because he is our hope. Because he is the one that we take heart in because he has already overcome the world. Because we are only capable of enduring the hard things of this world because of him, through his strength, through his spirit. Thank you, God for your Holy Spirit.

And because it's temporary. And so we are not going to forget that everything that we enduring is not in vain. It's for growing our character. It's for blessing others. It's for giving hope to other people when we've been able to say, yeah, I got through that thing and you're going through that thing and I can help you do that thing. It's becoming stronger in our faith with Jesus. It's about becoming deeper in our relationship.

with him. And it's about enduring until the end because it's not forever. Imagine a life, because it exists after this, imagine a life where you no longer have to resist your flesh. You no longer have to fight temptations. You no longer have to feel grief of loss. You no longer have to feel pain ever again. That is what we're working towards. This isn't forever because there is a life that we are going to be living after all of this where none of that exists anymore. Now to close off this episode, this is the pretty bow that I would like to tie it off in. I want to read this to you guys. Okay.

This is our final encouragement in today's topic about fighting this fight and the reality of the things that we have to endure in this life that will bring us into the next life. Maybe you're exhausted because somewhere along the way you thought following Jesus was supposed to stop requiring so much endurance. Maybe you're wondering why you're still fighting battles you thought you'd be done fighting. Maybe you're discouraged that you still have to preach truth to yourself. But needing endurance isn't evidence that you're failing. Endurance is part of the assignment.

Jesus never promised there wouldn't be a fight. He promised he would be with us in it. He promised his spirit. He gave us his word. He gave us his church. And he gave us armor. And most importantly, he told us how the story ends because there will eventually be a day when there is nothing left to fight. And we will be home.

Like actually home, right? We know that this place isn't our real home. Christ has already conquered sin and death. Our fight is the lifelong process of remaining faithful to the one who has already won. And so God has already given us everything that we need to endure this fight that we are doing here on earth. Right. Like we said, he literally promised us his spirit. He's given us his spirit, which I mean, we were talking about this in my Bible study yesterday.

We just go, we're in the Old Testament. And before Jesus came and left his spirit, I mean, I genuinely don't know how people did it without his spirit. I don't know how people endured without having the gift of the Holy Spirit, like counseling them and guiding them and comforting them. Are you kidding? I need the Holy Spirit. I don't know how much I would have endured then. Maybe God knew what he was doing by putting me in this generation versus any of those because they did it without the spirit of God, which is crazy. But he really has. He's given us everything that we need. Because a part of the assignment of saying, okay, I'm a Christian. I'm going to follow Jesus. God, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm picking up my cross daily and I'm going to follow you is endurance. Like that is actually a major part of the walk, right? And he didn't leave us stranded in that. He gave us a spirit. He's given us his word.

We have available to us every day and his church, which is us. He's given us each other to help support each other. And he has given us armor to fight this fight. That is our armor. So we are going to fight the good fight. We are going to finish the race and we are going to keep our faith. We are because we can. Because we have Jesus.

We couldn't do it without him. But we signed up for it. And so that's what we're going to do. We're just going to keep fighting. And I think that my biggest desire of what kind of hope I want you guys to walk away from with this episode. At least this is what I've hoped I've communicated. But if I haven't clearly communicated it until this moment, I just want to say that it's not about us fighting harder. but it's the truth of just not losing sight of what we're fighting for, why we're in the fight,

and reminding ourselves of the expectations that there is one, you know? There's a fight that we've signed up for and we need to keep our focus on why. And we need to keep our focus on what we're fighting toward. There is a finish line. There is eternity with Jesus. And that's ultimately what all of this is for. I have a couple questions for you guys, okay? So write these down and sit with Jesus on these

because I think they're going to be really, really helpful. One question that you could ask yourself is, have I been interpreting resistance as a sign that something is wrong when maybe this is simply a season where God is teaching me endurance? Another really humbling question that we could ask ourselves is where have I become tired of fighting simply because I thought I would be past this by now? Another good one is when the excitement and emotion aren't there, will I still choose obedience? What would it simply look like for me to stand firm today?

I love that one. Start with that one, actually. I'm going to do that too immediately after I'm done recording. What would it look like for us to stand firm and fighting the good fight today? What would that simple obedience look like? I love you guys. We're all in this together. We're all, Okay, I won't do it. We really are, though. We're in this together. And you're not alone when things feel really hard. God actually promises that, but he also promises his guidance and his spirit and his support and his word. And so we are eternally grateful for that. None of us would stand a chance without God's help. Hey guys, I love you a lot. Thank you for being here. I hope that this episode blessed you. I hope that it made sense. Can I share a little bit of a fun fact right now?

I just want you guys to know the irony. The irony of this episode. So this took me far too long to record. Way too long to record. And it was just like the hardest thing to do. I don't know why. That's all I'm going to say. And so anyway, the irony of it is I, I feel like we were talking about enduring and pressing and stretching and just like continuing to push when resistance comes. And I was feeling that for the entirety of this episode. The entire until right now, now we're chilling, right? Because it's over. But the last two hours, I was like, is everything okay?

What is going on? It's like I've never recorded a podcast episode in my life. It was so hard. It was so hard for me to record this episode. I'm so glad it's behind me. Oh my gosh. I mean, so the irony in it. just kept looking at God and being like, okay, that's really funny, God, I hear you.

We're talking about endurance and resistance and pushing and fighting the good fight. And here I am. We really are doing this together, guys. I promise. Oh, okay, everybody. Listen, I'll see you in just a couple days because today's Wednesday. So I'm going to see you on Friday. I hope you have a beautiful next couple of days.

I'll see you next time. But before we go, actually, can we do something really cool today? Can we show somebody how cool Jesus is? Can we walk more like him, talk more like him, be more like Jesus today? Okay, I love you guys. I'll see you on Friday. Bye.