Seek the Lord, take up your position; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord

2 Choronicles 20:1-22
I so love this story about Jehoshaphat and lessons within it. When Jehoshaphat heard that the
men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir were coming against him, he proclaimed a fast for all Judah so they could seek help from the Lord. He didn't try to work things out on his own, he fully trusted in the Lord's ability to deliver and help him out. He turned to God in prayer and fully trusted His promise of deliverance. That was his first port of call! 

I could imagine the size of the army that was coming against him. In verse 12 it says
"For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” The thoughts that were probably running through Jehoshaphat's mind. He knew that they couldn't face this army alone but he knew that the great God that they served had the ability to turn impossible situations around. He admitted, Lord we have NO power to face this vast army. We do not know what to do but OUR EYES ARE FOCUSSED ON YOU! Despite what's happening around us Lord, our eyes are glued on You. All our trust and hope is directed towards You, fully trusting that You alone will deliver!

And I love the Lord's reply in verses 15-17, "Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. ¹⁶ 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. ¹⁷ You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’

I thought about how many times the Lord continuously reminds me that the battles I face in life are not mine but His. Often I try to fight with my own human knowledge, strength, finances etc. The
Jehoshaphat story reminds me to seek the Lord, take up my position; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give me,

When  Jehoshaphat heard from the Lord, he bowed down with all his people to worship God. Some Levites praised the Lord with very loud voices! On the morning of the battle, Jehoshaphat encouraged his army by saying "Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.” 
 He then led his army out, praising God for what the Lord was about to do, At the end of the story,
"As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. ²³ The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another."

 What I love about this story is the fact that Jehoshaphat chose to fast and pray when he was overwhelmed with the news of the impending attack. He fully trusted His God to help him! He worshiped and praised Him! "Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord and to praise him for the splendor of his^[c] holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying:

“Give thanks to the Lord,
    for his love endures forever.”

And his God delivered!  

The bird lesson

“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing?  Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are?  Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Matthew 6:25-27

I was baffled and at the same time concerned about the bird laying her eggs out in the open, exposed to the elements. As you can see from the picture, it is such an odd spot for a bird's nest.

I was wondering why she chose the exposed location to lay her eggs. Why didn’t she hide her nest behind some plants or some sort of shelter? Wasn't she afraid of being attacked? How would she gather her food?  She would have to leave her eggs alone while she searched for food. Wasn't she concerned about that?

The bird didn't realise that she was teaching a massive lesson about worrying.

“Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them.”

The bird wasn't worried about anything because our Heavenly Father feeds her.  The bird is a reminder that our Heavenly Father knows what we need and He will take care of it!

Trust in the powerful, limitless God because He is faithful.

Thank you Lord for the simple yet powerful message!

What is your first port of call?

--> What would be your first port of call when you receive a late night phone call from your doctor explaining your medical check up results?

I wouldn’t be telling the truth if I didn’t say that I had a few moments of panic and worry and my mind going into overdrive, racing to try and figure things all out!

After a few minutes of trying to problem-solve in my head, I sat down and had a conversation with Daddy. I could imagine Him smiling and at the same time shaking His head and thinking 'There she goes trying to figure it all out!" 

Why talk to Him?  I believe that He is the only one who knows me better than I know myself. It was His hand that knitted me together in my mother’s womb and His eyes saw my unformed body! (Psalms 139:13, 16). He knows how everything works! Who else would be a better doctor and listener then my Creator!

I am encouraged by His words in which He says,  But now thus says the Lord, He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. (Isaiah 43:1)

The reading goes on to say ..When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. (vs 28) 

I take comfort in His Words, knowing that He is faithful and that when I hand over my fears of the unknown and my whole situation to Him, I believe AND trust that He will take control.

Trusting a known God

²⁴ “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. ²⁵ And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. ²⁶ From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. ²⁷ God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ²⁸ ‘For in him we live and move and have our being." Acts 17: 24 - 28a

I am encouraged this morning that as I look forward to this year, though I may not know what it holds, I know that “The God who made the world and everything in it..... and Who gives everyone life and breath and everything else....." has my back! 

Being Dependent

This morning I am reminded of the many great lessons that Jesus’ life has taught us and one in particular that captured my attention was His dependency on His Father.  He dependent so much on His Father! I thought about the different situations Jesus encountered where He could have just easily solved things on His own but NO! This is what He said:

John 8:28-So Jesus told them, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I AM, and that I do nothing on my own authority. Instead, I speak only what the Father has taught me.

John 5:19-Jesus gave them this answer: "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.

John 12:49-50 -For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.

Such a great lesson! It made me think of my own life and the journey I am taking. Am I really depending on HIM or am I too independent in my ways and in my thinking? For me to be dependent, I know I need to be aware of my need for the Lord.

Dear Lord,

May the reality of Your Presence make me very aware of my need to be dependent upon You in all things. I know that all You really want from me is everything!

Streams of living water will flow from within him

I was blessed with this devotional this morning.

"He that believeth on Me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water" (KJV).

'We as children of God are to bring forth life and fruit that was birthed and begun in God. In the above Scripture, we see a key that is so important. The passage begins with, "He that believeth..." The word believe is in no way a shallow belief, but one of complete trust and total reliance on. Jesus is not only the One we trust in, but He must become our trust. And out of this place of trust we will find the abundance of God flowing through us in every area of our lives.
The word states in Daniel 11:32, "The people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits" (NKJV). And another Scripture that resonates is Isaiah 26:3, "You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind...is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You" (AMP). Strength and peace are fruit that are produced as we abide in the river of God.
As we are born again, we are blessed with His extravagant love and the privilege of knowing Him and being filled with Him, His love, His riches, His promises, His healing, His restoration and becoming one with all He is and possesses.

This place is a continuous flow from Him to us, through us to others – ah, what bliss. Again, this is a river that never runs dry, and as we learn to bask in this river we will never run dry.'

by  Kim Hadaway, XP Ministries