The enemy will not prevail
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Last evening, while ministering at a service, I shared a story about the day a girl decided she wanted to fight me. I was in grade school back then. On the afternoon she initiated the fight, I was riding the bus home from school. And unfortunately, I was suffering from severe motion sickness. I honestly didn’t feel well enough to fight.
I was queasy, drained and I just wanted to go somewhere and lie down. Why did she want to throw blows on that day of all days? But, whether I wanted to fight or not, I was going to have to rise to the occasion.
You see, in my neighborhood, on the east side of Buffalo, the kids were tough. If someone wanted to scrap in the street, that was no time to back down. You had better square up and do all you could to win the battle for the sake of both your reputation and safety.
So that’s exactly what I did.
I swung wildly, giving this unwanted fight all my energy. Then, suddenly, without warning, seemingly out of nowhere, my older sister Shavette stepped in and took over the fight. She was a much stronger and much more skilled fighter than I was. She easily defeated the girl who had targeted me.
As long as Shavette and I attended the same school, any time someone wanted to fight me, they had to go through her first. I was so happy to have her protection, especially against the bigger, meaner girls in school.
That simple memory made me consider how awesome it is to be protected in our walk of faith. In order for the enemy to get to us, he has to get past God first.
“God has placed a hedge around you. You are surrounded by His protection and favor. The enemy can’t do what he’s trying to do because GOD is blocking it! ”
In the book of 2 Chronicles, chapter 14, a righteous king of Judah named Asa served the Lord faithfully. He got rid of idols and commanded Judah to worship the Lord. So God favored Asa throughout his reign and gave Judah peace, and prosperity. They didn’t have to fight any enemies for 10 whole years. Without the threat of war, the Bible says in verse 7, “they built and prospered.”
But after a decade of peace, rest and prosperity, the enemy attacked. The Ethiopians came against Judah with a vast army of 1 million soldiers. By comparison, Judah and Benjamin’s combined army only had 580,000 soldiers.
Seeing that Judah was greatly outnumbered, in verse 11, Asa cried out to the Lord and said, “O Lord, there is none like you to help, between the mighty and the weak. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this multitude. O Lord, you are our God; let not man prevail against you.”
Let’s re-read the last part of the previous sentence. Asa said, “…let not man prevail against you.”
Against you.
That’s significant.
As you can see, this righteous king pointed out that the Ethiopian army wasn’t coming after Judah or Asa personally; they were coming after the God of Judah. The realization that the battle was the Lord’s is what drove Asa to cry out to the Lord in his distress.
Is that what you’re doing? Are you remembering that the battle is not yours?
The million-man Ethiopian army was too strong for Judah alone, which is why, in his appeal to God for help, Asa characterized the war as a showdown between “the mighty and the weak.”
Right now, you might be in the middle of your own showdown. There are odds stacked against you. There are deep valleys, high hills and even higher mountains that you can’t climb over. You are too weak to do this on your own. You need God to fight this battle and win.
Well, I’ve got good news; He is already fighting for you, just as He did for Asa and Judah. Verse 12 says, “So the Lord defeated the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah.”
The word of the Lord records that in the midst of the battle, the Ethiopians took off running. By the time the battle was over, God had given Judah total victory. According to scripture, none of the Ethiopians remained alive. Judah even attacked the surrounding cities and carried away the spoils of war.
The weaker army in the natural, Judah, was the strongest army in the spiritual, because the Greatest One of all was on their side. God honored Asa’s prayer, just as He is honoring your prayers.
So don’t fret because you’re under attack. Don’t get intimidated because the problem is bigger than you; because the bills are more than you can pay; because the disease is something doctors can’t cure; because your relationship issues seem irreconcilable; because your depression appears to be worsening; because your children are going through a rebellious phase; because the job opportunities aren’t opening up; because the hindrance won’t move out of your way; or because you can’t seem to get your vision off the ground.
You serve a God who is more than able and the One who is strong and mighty is already fighting for you. He’s favoring you. He’s working through you. The fight is fixed. It’s rigged in your favor. The battle is won. So you might as well rejoice.
To remind you of who you’ve got on your side, working on your behalf, I’m stirring Deuteronomy 31:8 NIV into your cup of inspiration, which says, “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
As you drink down the contents of your cup, cast fear, worry, stress, anxiousness and discouragement aside. Embrace faith and confidence in the Omnipotent, all-powerful God, who won’t let the enemy prevail against Him.
Now let’s pray.
God, I claim victory over this issue I’m facing. There is no problem too big or too hard for You to work out. So I stand boldly, courageously and confidently upon Your word. I declare that the battle is won because, You, oh Lord, cannot be conquered. All power belongs to You. Thank You for fighting for me and securing victory for me every time. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
As always, thanks for reading and until next time... may today's cup of inspiration uplift, encourage, and empower you!
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