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Saturday, October 28, 2006

Stand Firm


This morning when I opened my Bible, the Lord led me to II Chronicles chapter 20.

A vast army was coming against King Jehoshaphat. All the peoples under the reign of this king were afraid and the king himself was very alarmed. They all gathered together and inquired of the Lord saying, "O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you....But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir...See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us..." ...Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel and he 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. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. 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.' "

No matter what battle you are facing today, the Lord wants you to know that you do not face the battle alone. In fact, you don't even have to fight the battle at all. All you must do is stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you. His strength is made perfect in our weakness and soon we will be able to take from the ashes - and not necessarily rebuild from those ashes, but rather trade them in for beauty.

The Lord is the same - yesterday, today and forever - and what He did for King Jehoshaphat and the people of Israel, He will also do for you - if you stand firm and let Him do the fighting.

5 comments:

Sara said...

thanks for this post. i was running around jump starting my day and your words slowed me down and focused my day; just what i needed. grace to you today my friend.

Margie said...

I love that song "the battle belongs to the Lord" and actually I can never sing it without crying.
****
In heavenly armour we'll enter the land
The battle belongs to the Lord
No weapon that's fashioned against us shall stand
The battle belongs to the Lord

We sing glory and honor
Power and strength to the Lord
(repeat)

The power of darkness comes in like a flood
The battle belongs to the Lord
He's raised up a standard, the power of His blood
The battle belongs to the Lord

When your enemy presses in hard do not fear
The battle belongs to the Lord
Take courage my friend, your redemption is near
The battle belongs to the Lord

Pat said...

I'm singing with Margie...I"m the one with the bad voice.
Missed your posts, been praying for you.
He will indeed give us beauty for ashes ~ joy will replace our mourning. Thanks for the beautiful reminder.
Now I'm crying.

Mrs. Mac said...

"No matter what battle you are facing today, the Lord wants you to know that you do not face the battle alone. In fact, you don't even have to fight the battle at all. All you must do is stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you. His strength is made perfect in our weakness and soon we will be able to take from the ashes - and not necessarily rebuild from those ashes, but rather trade them in for beauty." THANK YOU FOR THE REMINDER.

KayMac said...

A very good word!