Jesu, juva
KNOW YOUR ENEMY
THE BUTTON PUSHER
You know someone who has an uncanny ability to push your buttons. You know exactly which buttons I’m talking about. The ones that create instant emotional responses. The ones that steal your peace and hijack your calm.
This person seems to possess an uncanny skill for finding the perfect words or actions capable of changing how you’re feeling within a breath.
Suddenly, your mind is creating thoughts you know are rising from your old way of thinking. The way you’re working so hard to conquer. You’ve been working hard and long, using intentional habits to fill your mind with the building blocks of the new you. The Bible speaks of when you know Christ and have the Holy Spirit dwelling in you.
You accomplish this through consistent prayer, stillness, listening to the Holy Spirit. You set aside dedicated time for reading the Bible, daily devotions, good books, watching or listening to content that reminds you of who you truly are in Christ Jesus.
Then this person shows up. And within seconds, all that progress feels threatened.
THE DISTURBANCE IN THE FORCE
It’s amazing how quickly this shift can occur. It’s also amazing how much it can consume your inner dialogue. How much time it can rob from your day. And primarily, how it steals your effectiveness.
The new you that enjoys peace, joy, praise, and sharing your testimony in ways you love? Gone. Replaced by anger, frustration, and internal arguments you never speak out loud.
We do our very best to capture this disturbance within us and prevent any negative outward display. Why? Because we know it feeds the purpose of the efforts of the other person.
We hope to rob them of their expected response. We want to show the solidity of our identity in Christ we diligently strive for.
But here’s what you’re missing:
IT’S NOT ABOUT THEM
That person pushing your buttons? They’re not the real enemy.
They might think they are. You might think they are. But they’re not.
They’re being used.
The real enemy is behind them. Operating through them. Using their words, their actions, their timing to accomplish a specific goal: to steal your peace, kill your joy, and destroy your effectiveness.
Look at the image of Jesus casting out demons. He’s not arguing with the person. He’s not trying to reason with flesh and blood. He’s speaking to the source. The demonic force operating through the person.
That’s what you need to do.
SPEAK TO THE SOURCE
When that person pushes your buttons, recognize what’s really happening. This isn’t just an annoying individual. This is spiritual warfare.
The enemy knows your weak spots. He knows what triggers you. He knows how to disrupt the new life you’re building. And he will use anyone available to accomplish his mission.
Sometimes he uses people who don’t even know they’re being used. They think it’s just their personality. Their opinion. Their right to speak. But behind it, there’s a strategic attack designed to knock you off course.
So stop fighting the person. Fight the enemy behind them.
HOW TO FIGHT
1. Recognize the attack for what it is.
When your buttons get pushed, don’t just react. Pause. Recognize that this is spiritual warfare, not just a personality conflict.
2. Refuse to engage on the flesh level.
Don’t argue. Don’t defend. Don’t try to prove them wrong. That’s exactly what the enemy wants. He wants you distracted, frustrated, and ineffective.
3. Address the real enemy.
In your mind, or out loud if you’re alone, speak to the demonic force behind the attack. “I see you. I know what you’re trying to do. In the name of Jesus, you have no authority here. Leave.”
4. Guard your peace.
Your peace is a weapon. When you maintain it in the face of attack, you’re showing the enemy he has no power over you. That drives him crazy. And it protects everything you’ve been building.
5. Pray for the person being used.
They’re not your enemy. They’re a prisoner of war. Pray for their freedom. Pray for their eyes to be opened. Pray that God would break the enemy’s grip on their life.
YOUR DEFENSE
The reason you’re vulnerable to these attacks is simple: you’re growing. You’re becoming a threat. The enemy doesn’t waste energy on ineffective Christians. He attacks the ones who are actually doing damage to his kingdom.
So wear your armor. Daily. Not just when you feel like it.
Stay in the Word. Pray without ceasing. Keep the Holy Spirit’s presence front and center in your mind. Maintain your stillness and listening time.
Because when the attack comes (and it will come), you need to be ready. Not scrambling to put on armor. Already wearing it.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU GET THIS
When you learn to speak beyond the person to the source, everything changes.
That person who used to derail your entire day? They lose their power. Not because you’re ignoring them or being fake. But because you see through the attack to the real enemy. And you know how to fight him.
Your peace stays intact. Your joy remains. Your effectiveness continues. The new you that you’ve been building through prayer, the Word, and the Holy Spirit stays strong.
And sometimes, when you refuse to give the enemy what he wants, he stops using that person to attack you. He moves on to someone else who will give him the reaction he’s looking for.
Brother, we’re in a war. The attacks are real. The enemy is strategic. And he will use anyone he can to knock us off course.
But when you recognize the real enemy and speak to the source instead of the person, you take away his greatest weapon: your emotional reaction.
Stay armored. Stay alert. And when the attack comes, remember who you’re really fighting.
It’s not flesh and blood. It never was.
Blane
SDG
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