It’s interesting to me that life as a follower of Christ is often portrayed as a battle…the battle of light, warring against the kingdom of darkness to take back the captives from the enemy…
And while I think we would all agree, that we are always in the battle, there are seasons of our life that feel more like war than others…
I’m in one of those seasons right now…
There’s the normal struggles of parenting teenagers and an adopted older child…The challenges of a husband who is working long hours right now, thankfully because of a big contract…And in the last couple of weeks, there has been a downpour of bad news in the lives of some people I love…
Some of the news has rocked my world… It’s made me want to kick and scream…to throw a spiritual temper tantrum… But you know, it’s really not God that I’m mad at… I believe with ALL of my heart that HE is good… It’s the enemy…the prince of darkness who continues to plague this world, that I’m angry at… I’m just tired of sin, and death and suffering… Sometimes I’m just so ready for Jesus to come back…
But the fact is, I am called to live the abundant life, in spite of my circumstances… I’m called to live with joy and peace, thanksgiving and love… I’m called to be light, in spite of the darkness… So the question needs to be asked, what do you do when the battle heats up?
One of the things that I’ve been learning as I pray for my friends that are suffering so much now is that praise is essential in times of extreme conflict, when the enemy comes against us… Whether it’s the enemy of cancer…or addictions…or lust…or joblessness or depression… Whatever it is, we must learn to face the enemy with a spirit of praise for our God who is able to do the impossible…
There’s a wonderful story in 2 Chronicles 20 about a good king of Judah named Jehoshaphat… the chapter opens with some really wicked enemies of Judah coming against them…
And when King Jehoshaphat hears about it, he stands up in the assembly at the temple of God and he cries out to God…
2 CHRONICLES 20:6-9 & 12…
“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. 7 O our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? 8 They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, 9 ‘If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.’
12 O our God, will you not judge them? 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 upon you.”
Jehoshaphat heard about the enemy coming against Judah and he went straight to the LORD…
He didn’t call his best military advisors…He didn’t order the best of his arsenal brought out from the storehouses…He went before the people and he led them to the throne of God
And then he praised God and remembered all that He had done before…And then the LORD responds…
2 CHRONICLES 20:15&17
15 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…17 You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you… Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’ ”
And this is how Jehoshaphat and the people respond to God’s word…
2 CHRONICLES 20:18-19…
18 Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the Lord. 19 Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the Lord, the God of Israel, with very loud voices.
Are you starting to hear a common theme of praise and worship? They praised as if the victory was already won…
Well listen to what happens…
2 CHRONICLES 20:20-21
20 Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.” 21 After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying: “Give thanks to the Lord, for his love endures forever.”
They go into battle, praising God… It wasn’t their bravest leaders in the front… Or their fiercest warriors… It was men appointed to sing praise to God…
When we go into battle, we should always go in praising God… Here’s why…
First, Psalm 22:3, in the King James Translation, it says that God inhabits the praise of His people… Matthew Henry says, “God manifests His glory, grace and special presence with His people when they praise.”
A group of us are starting to meet weekly to pray for my friend with Stage 4 breast cancer, and following the example of the King Jehoshaphat, we are beginning our time with praise…
My friend is in a battle for her life, a vast army of cancer has come against her and we will go out in front of her, singing His praises…
We experienced first hand, this past week, how God truly inhabits the praise of His people… His presence was almost tangible as we were reminded of how great our God is… Our hearts were strengthened and instead of despair, we have great hope…
And that brings me to the second reason to praise… Praise reminds us of who God is…
In ancient times, the name of a person held tremendous significance… A person’s name described their character…
So when we pray and praise the names of God, we are focusing on who He is… And we are reminded that He is sufficient for all of our needs…
And that brings me to the third reason we praise… When we praise, we remember how BIG our Great God is and it helps to put our problems and circumstances in a proper perspective…
As the wonderful old hymn says, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.”
When we’re praising, there’s no room in our hearts for fear, or doubt, or discouragement or despair…the glory of God just crowds it all out…
So here’s what happened when the men of Judah went into battle praising God…
2 CHRONICLES 20:22-24
22 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 men of Ammon and Moab 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.
They turned on each other and destroyed themselves…
24 When the men of Judah came to the place that overlooks the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped.
God…our Mighty Warrior, who fights our battles for us, wiped out their enemy to His glory and praise…
So as you fight life’s battles, no matter how hopeless they may seem, no matter how tempted you are to give in to despair, no matter how vast the enemy seems… Turn your eyes to our glorious God and praise Him…
The circumstances might not always change right away, but your heart will and you will shine His light into the darkness in a way that is only possible when we’re walking through life’s darkest trials…
4 comments:
Oh Sharla! reading "Praise in the Battle" has blessed my heart today!! I was sooooo excited to read ll Chronicles and be reminded that Our God Almight does fight our battles IF we just give them to Him and Praise Him and TRUST Him!! I am so excited to see how our prayers for our 'girlfriend' during her battle will be answered!! WOO-HOO!! :o)
Judy Z
Thanks for this amazing word from God! Seriously. I needed to read this today. Hugs, L
Sharla, this is wonderful!! I love how you brought this all together. Thank you for sharing this.
Sharla, how my heart aches for you and for your friend. I know it's not cancer with my friend, but I understand the emotions.
You know that since we met I wished you could live next door because I do would love to have a friend like you. I have prayed for that kind of friend for over 6 years now. And, just when I feel like I was starting to come alive after really... being in a pit (I didn't know it at the time), an unbelievable illness stikes.
I know you know part of the story... but I was taking an exercise class that I couldn't wait to go to and the girl who was teaching... I just knew she was the friend I had been praying for.
I am not sure I still get how grave her situation was at one point. I don't know that we understand how close she came to dying... possibly right in front of us because no one knew there was something other than pneumonia wrong...and she was trying to teach this intense exercise class with a heart problem.
ANYWAY, all that to say that over the last two months, she is without a doubt the friend I have prayed for and... more importantly... she has made a remarkable recovery. She went to the cardiologist yesterday and he can not believe the recovery she has made. He certainly can not believe she is exercising again... well actually.. doing her ministry again... teaching ZUmba to over 100 woman at a time. She holds a devotional after the class.
I will never understand why God choses to heal some people and not others. I do know that he is still in the business of healing. I will do battle for your friend. I guess I shared all the above so you would know I understand. I was devastated to see this young, VERY fit mother suffer.
May God be glorified in a mighty way through her healing!
Big hugs,
April
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