"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood..." (Ephesians 5:12).

Have you ever heard someone say, "I will never do business with another Christian?" I hear this comment quite often in my dealings with Christian business people. This comment represents the battle that rages against Christian business people by the enemy of our soul to destroy the witness and effectiveness of Christian business people. We must realize that we are in a war. A war for the souls of men. A war to discredit all that a Christian stands for. A war that is designed to divide Christian against Christian.

Satan's ploy in the life of the Christian businessperson is to do several things to make he or she ineffective as a soldier in the marketplace. First, he wants to discredit them by allowing them to fail other people in their professional services. This often shows up in failing to perform what they committed to do or performing in an unsatisfactory way. Sometimes this is a result of a downright failure of the businessperson to perform with excellence. In other cases, it may be a misunderstanding in the midst of the service that causes strife and division instigated by the enemy. The result in both cases is the same, a division among Christians and even non-Christians, resulting in a damaged witness for Christ. The apostle Peter admonishes us to "live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us" (1 Peter 2:12).

There are times when each of us is thrust into situations out of our control. Sometimes this results in our inability to pay a bill on time, or deliver what we said. In order for Satan not to win in these battles, it requires extra communication with those in whom we are dealing. If the motive of your heart is to do right, then God will give you favor in order to work through these difficult spots. Ask God today to show you where the enemy is seeking to make you ineffective.

We wage a spiritual war that is not flesh and blood. We must fight this war with spiritual weapons applied to practical daily living.