Thank you for your comments, George. We are to put on the full armor of God indeed. "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." (Ephesians 6:12, KJV). I think of the illustration of Paul in his own life with his battle between the flesh and the spirit. (Galatians 5:17). Since we struggle with the flesh and the spirit at every waking moment, we ask ourselves: Which one is going to win out? The easy answer: The one we feed the most, of course. (Courtesy of Dr. Tim LaHaye).
The enemy knows how get at our hot buttons and target our weaknesses. He knows our battleground and that battleground is the world, the flesh and the devil. (Galatians 5:16-17; Ephesians 6:1; 2 Corinthians 10:5). Furthermore, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, as subsets of our source of struggles, further complicates our day to day affairs. (1 John 2:15-17). So, yes, our battle is not ours and ours alone to fight. The phrase, "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer," comes to mind as it relates to the passage of Matthew 10:16: "Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves." Of course, this is accomplished by faithfully studying the Word of God. 2 Timothy 2:15 immediately comes to mind along with Acts 17:11 and 1 John 4 as other brief passages of mind. The enemy does not play fair and is not a respecter of persons. He will hope to divide and conquer at any opportunity in a moment's notice. (1 Peter 5:8). "The Strategy of Satan" by Warren W. Wiersbe puts everything in its proper perspective in how the adversary targets our weak spots (i.e., chinks in our armor) in whatever means he can to bring us down. Be it the mind, the body, the will, the heart and conscience. Through any compromised areas or strongholds to exploit, that is. So, don't give him a beachhead, right? Don't give the enemy a reason or an excuse. We need to put on the full armor of God and pounce on every thought at every turning moment indeed. Unfortunately, this has become a constant for believers these days! Thank you again, George. I appreciate the encouraging thoughts. God bless.