Early in the first years of the Civil War, both sides saw the need to control certain key strategic areas. The Confederate states saw the importance of its port cities to remain open. The Southern economy was extremely dependent on its supply line from Europe staying unimpeded. The Mississippi River was another lifeline for the Rebel states. If navigation on that river did not remain fully in control of the South, the Confederacy would quite literally be cut in two.
The Northern military leadership came to the same obvious strategies for them to successfully win the war. The Union, with its much larger navy, quickly established a naval blockade along the Atlantic coastline. The strategy was called, "the Anaconda plan." The blockade stretched from the port towns of Virginia, all the way down and around the Gulf of Mexico, even extending to the port cities of Texas. This would effectively, like a snake, strangle the commerce of the South. When it came to the Mississippi River, the Union Army's plan involved sending an amphibious flotilla up from New Orleans, and simultaneously sailing another force, down from the Tennessee River, capturing or destroying the Rebel forts along the way. This would be followed by a land force of 80,000 men marching down the banks of this watery highway.
Port cities like Norfolk, Charleston, Savannah and New Orleans would be given special attention as targets. They were extremely valuable for the Confederate war effort. Important Rebel forts like Fort Henry and Fort Donelson on the Tennessee and Vicksburg on the Mississippi were key strong-points that needed to fall before the North's strategy could succeed. On the other hand, these same key places had to be held if the South was to have any hope of survival.
In the Spiritual realm there is a similar style of warfare taking place. The Enemy of our souls has his own strategic ideas on which important key places need to attack. The great serpent of old has a plan to strangle the influence of the Church in the world. Those crucial key places have names too. Names like: Family, Children, Marriage, Education, and Biblical Truth, just to name a few of the important ports the devil wants to cut off or capture. These are the areas that the Church, and by the Church, I don't just mean the institutional Church, but am referring to every individual Believer need to win at all cost. We are called to stand up and defend those key spiritual strong-points. We cannot let them be strangled, captured, and fall for the lies of the Enemy.
We, the Church, have a strategy too. Our goal is to win the World for Jesus Christ, every man, woman, and child. No place is to be given over to the Enemy. Our plan is to strangle the lies of the Enemy and resupply the starving with Truth. No Bible verse shouts it any clearer than this...
"Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand firm against all the strategies of the devil. For your struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against rulers, against authorities, against the powers of this world's darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in heavenly places." Ephesians 6:11-12
No comments:
Post a Comment