1 Chronicles 20:15-17
The battles I face in my daily walk may be internal, such as anger, bitterness, or rebellion or they may be external, such as health, finances, job, or relationships. So many times, I find I try to fight my own battles instead of allowing God to fight them for me. God is ready and willing to help me fight my battles; I need to be ready and willing to allow Him to do so. Sometimes that requires a great deal of patience on my part because God's timing is not my own. There are times when in the battle, God may call me to just be still and let Him do the fighting, but there are other times where He calls me to be an active participant in the battle. Either way, however, when God is fighting for me, I know who is victorious in the end.
Sometimes God will send others along side of me to help me fight my battles. When Joshua was fighting the army of Amalek in Exodus 17:8-16, Moses had to hold the staff up in his hand. As long as Moses held the staff up, the Israelites were winning, but when his arms went down, they began to lose. When his arms became tired, and he could no longer hold them up, Aaron and Hur came alongside of him and helped him hold his arms up. There are times when I might need others to come alongside me in the battles I am fighting. There are times when I am needed to help someone else "hold up their arms" in the battles they are fighting. Paul, in Galatians 6:2, exhorts me to, "Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ."
There's not always a quick end to the battles I face, but I can take comfort in knowing I will experience victory in the end when I have God fighting for me and I keep my focus on Him.
Charles Stanley has a great sermon titled, Fight Your Battles on Your Knees. The link will take you to the sermon notes if you don't have time to listen to the sermon, but I encourage you to listen to the sermon when you have time. God uses the battles in my life to mold me into the person He wants me to become. In his sermon, Charles Stanley says, "In a battle, you and I may lose money, pride, or control over a situation. But if the struggle brings us to the point of total surrender to the Lord, we will always win spiritually." The battles I face may not always end in the way I feel they should end, but it's how I end spiritually that matters...having a heart of total surrender to the Lord, ready and willing to do what He's called me to do; to walk the path He's called me to walk; to fight the battles He's allowed in my life; realizing that what happens in my life serves to make me more like Christ.
I'm so thankful I have a loving Heavenly Father who will fight my battles with me and for me. He's already gone ahead of me and knows what I will face. I don't ever have to face them alone!
He (Jahaziel, upon whom the Spirit of the Lord had come) said: "Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours but God's. Tomorrow march down against them...You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you. O Judah and Jerusalem. do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.'"Exodus 14:14
The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.2 Chronicles 32:7-8
"Be strong and courageous! Don't be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria or his mighty army, for there is a power far greater on our side! He may have a great army, but they are merely men. We have the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles for us!" Hezekiah's words greatly encouraged the people.Deuteronomy 1:29-31
"But I said to you, 'Don't be shocked or afraid of them! The Lord your God is going ahead of you. He will fight for you, just as you saw Him do in Egypt. And you saw how the Lord your God cared for you all along the way as you traveled through the wilderness, just as a father cares for his child. Now he has brought you to this place.'"The children of Israel provide a great example of what happens when God's children try to fight their battles on their own. There is a pattern all through the Old Testament where they would follow God for a while and then they would turn away from God and worship idols an perform other sinful acts. When they turned their backs on God and were living in sin, they lost many of the battles they fought because God was not fighting with them. However, when they were following God and walking in His ways, God helped them in their battles, and they were victorious.
The battles I face in my daily walk may be internal, such as anger, bitterness, or rebellion or they may be external, such as health, finances, job, or relationships. So many times, I find I try to fight my own battles instead of allowing God to fight them for me. God is ready and willing to help me fight my battles; I need to be ready and willing to allow Him to do so. Sometimes that requires a great deal of patience on my part because God's timing is not my own. There are times when in the battle, God may call me to just be still and let Him do the fighting, but there are other times where He calls me to be an active participant in the battle. Either way, however, when God is fighting for me, I know who is victorious in the end.
Sometimes God will send others along side of me to help me fight my battles. When Joshua was fighting the army of Amalek in Exodus 17:8-16, Moses had to hold the staff up in his hand. As long as Moses held the staff up, the Israelites were winning, but when his arms went down, they began to lose. When his arms became tired, and he could no longer hold them up, Aaron and Hur came alongside of him and helped him hold his arms up. There are times when I might need others to come alongside me in the battles I am fighting. There are times when I am needed to help someone else "hold up their arms" in the battles they are fighting. Paul, in Galatians 6:2, exhorts me to, "Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ."
There's not always a quick end to the battles I face, but I can take comfort in knowing I will experience victory in the end when I have God fighting for me and I keep my focus on Him.
Charles Stanley has a great sermon titled, Fight Your Battles on Your Knees. The link will take you to the sermon notes if you don't have time to listen to the sermon, but I encourage you to listen to the sermon when you have time. God uses the battles in my life to mold me into the person He wants me to become. In his sermon, Charles Stanley says, "In a battle, you and I may lose money, pride, or control over a situation. But if the struggle brings us to the point of total surrender to the Lord, we will always win spiritually." The battles I face may not always end in the way I feel they should end, but it's how I end spiritually that matters...having a heart of total surrender to the Lord, ready and willing to do what He's called me to do; to walk the path He's called me to walk; to fight the battles He's allowed in my life; realizing that what happens in my life serves to make me more like Christ.
I'm so thankful I have a loving Heavenly Father who will fight my battles with me and for me. He's already gone ahead of me and knows what I will face. I don't ever have to face them alone!
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