1 John 4:4 You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.

In the damp spring of 1863 just outside Rome, Georgia, 450 Confederate cavalrymen under Brigadier General Nathan Bedford Forrest were preparing to engage a federal force about three times their size. Forrest and his men had been skirmishing with northern troops led by Colonel Abel D. Streight for several weeks while in the mountains of Alabama, but now that the Union lines had emerged onto the plains of Georgia a direct confrontation seemed inevitable.

General Forrest was known for his cunning and savagery. Not only was infamous for his skill in battle, he was also a master of cards with an uncanny ability to bluff. At 6 foot 2 inches and 210 pounds he was an imposing figure that towered over the average men of his day.

At a pre-battle parley the two leaders met to discuss terms. Forrest’s conditions were direct and brusque. He demanded immediate surrender “to stop the further and useless effusion of blood.” He concluded with this ultimatum: “Should my demand be refused, I cannot be responsible for the fate of your command,” adding that if he prevailed every Union soldier and officer would be “put to the sword.”

Colonel Streight was in a difficult position. He was well aware of his adversary’s “take no prisoners” approach and because he was operating in hostile territory, his intelligence reports were sketchy.

As the meeting continued, Forrest had his troops marched continuously across an open field to give the impression that they numbered in the thousands. In the distance his officers kept moving their only two canons across a rise plainly visible to Streight, then back along a lower path the colonel couldn’t see, and over the rise once again.

“Name of God!” Streight finally exclaimed. “How many guns have you got? There’s fifteen I’ve counted already.”

“I reckon that’s all that has kept up,” the poker-faced Forrest responded.

In the end, Colonel Streight surrendered without ever firing a shot. He concluded that his regiment could never hold out against such a large number of Confederate troops with superior fire power. But he had surrendered to a deception, the Union commander had been seeing the same few men and canons many times over.

As you and I eat and sleep and work in this fallen world, our enemy is constantly trying to get us to surrender. He wants us to give in to despair, to our flesh, to our fears. He wants us to believe that his strength is overwhelming and that Christ and his promises are no match for the struggles we face.

What the devil hopes you won’t notice is that it’s all a deception. The reality is that nothing can overcome the life of Christ within you. Jesus’ blood has washed you clean and made you his own. The best the devil can do is put up some fake scenery and hope we fall for it.

Don’t surrender to a deception. Center yourself in God’s truth. Victory is already ours.

(Adapted from Shrouds of Glory: From Atlanta to Nashville: The Last Great Campaign of the Civil War and a devotional by the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod).