inner strength | considering the word

“I’ve come to fight you in the name of the Lord Almighty. Today the Lord will help me defeat you.” (parts of 1 Sam. 17:45-46)

The Israelites were confronted by a giant that was larger and stronger than them. They were so frightened they didn’t know what to do.

Sometimes we are faced with enemies or battles that feel the same way. And some battles take a while. Perhaps, like the Israelites giant, the challenge in our lives is given every morning and every night for 40 days. I once had a health issue that lasted 7 ½ years.

We can run away and hide, like some of them did. Or we can lean on God, as David did.

David realized the enemy was making fun of the army of the living God, and he knew that was not ok. They mattered to God.

We are children of the living God, and we matter to God, as well.

Others criticized David, belittled him, and talked down to him, as he started to rise up against the enemy. They may do the same to us; but David was strong in his resolve. He remembered all the previous occasions on which the Lord had helped him defeat an enemy or overcome an obstacle, and he said, “He will keep me safe now.”

The King tried to have David fight in his armor, but it didn’t fit David. He couldn’t fight like someone else. He had to fight like him. When we are in our battle, or facing our enemy, we have to fight with what the Lord has given us, and trust that the Lord will keep us safe, just as He did David, and just as He has done for us in the past.

The enemy laughed in David’s face, but David said, I’ve come to you in the name of the Lord! He didn’t try to fight in his own strength. He didn’t have to. He knew the Lord would help him defeat the enemy.

He will do the same for us. The battle may rage, we may have to endure, but the Lord will always be on our side, and He will fight for us! When we lean into Him in our weakest moments, His strength will always carry us through; and He will prove that the enemy can be defeated with the smallest of actions.

Just believe,

jamie

Pr. 12:15: “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but he who heeds counsel is wise.”

Psalm 53:1 says, “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.'” Verse 2 says, “God looks down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek God.”

There are many false teachings in the world, and if we don’t seek and heed wise counsel that helps us to understand more of God, we run the risk of becoming fools.

Being kind to our fellow man is a good thing, but understanding God helps us know that what our fellow men really need is to know the One true Living God.

Following rules is not necessarily a bad thing, but understanding God helps to understand that it is belief in Jesus Christ, and His grace that bring salvation.

Inner strength isn’t the thing on which we must build and rely, when the Lord, our Strength and our Shield, perfects His strength in our weaknesses.

Peace is something we all seek, but there is a peace that surpasses all understanding, that comes only from Christ Jesus.

Seeking God will bring more understanding of God, and will protect us from deceitful thoughts that teach a life lived outside of God.

We need seek Him to understand Him more and more. We will be counted wise by the only One who really matters, and we will not suffer the fate of the fools.

Not only that, but we won’t have to live a life thinking it all rides on us. Our understanding will allow us to know that we have a Helper who will guide us through all things.

In His care,

jamie