Every child of God must understand that you are going to face circumstances in life that will come to discourage you and make you wonder if God is with you, if He loves you, if He’s even listening to you. Sometimes you may feel like you are alone in your battles with no hope. But I have good Gospel news for you. There is always hope, because God is the God of breakthrough, and He is faithful to His promises and those who trust in Him. So don’t panic and allow fear to come in. Stand strong because your faith is on display. You are being challenged as a child of God to fight back, in faith, understanding that your faith is being tested. The Bible says in James 1:2-4, “My fellow believers, when it seems as though you are facing nothing but difficulties, see it as an invaluable opportunity to experience the greatest joy that you can! For you know that when your faith is tested it stirs up in you the power of endurance. And then as your endurance grows even stronger, it will release perfection into every part of your being until there is nothing missing and nothing lacking.”
Understand that whenever you are doing good before the Lord and walking in obedience to the Word of God, you can expect the enemy to show up. He comes to attack your faith and get you to doubt God’s Word. From the beginning Satan has challenged our faith, and none of us are exempt from these attacks. But if the devil can get you out of faith, he has already defeated you. That’s because he knows that if he can stop you from trusting God it strengthens his kingdom of doubt, unbelief, defeat, and deception which brings you to a place of defeat. So often we find ourselves under attack and in a place of despair, but these are just distractions from the enemy to take us off course and get us to say things that are contrary to what God has said.
It is time to know what you are made of. It is time to know your God. It is time for you to have mountain moving faith; faith that speaks the answer and not the problem. Faith that says, “I am more than a conqueror” (Romans 8:37). During those times when you are feeling all alone, you must do as David did and encourage and strengthen yourself in the Lord. (Samuel 30:6) Don’t wait for others to come to your rescue. Your faith is on display, so allow it to rise and be heard and seen. The people around you need to see your trust in your God. They need to see that your faith is strong even through your tests and trials.
Three nations were coming against Jehoshaphat like the sands of the sea. But like Jehoshaphat, what do you do when you don’t know what to do? You must first deal with fear. When facing circumstances and challenges, when the doctor gives you a bad report, when your money is funny, your marriage is on the rocks, and everything is being thrown at you but the kitchen sink, you must take a moment and deal with fear by rejecting it. You don’t have to be fearful because Jesus said He has not given you a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7) Fear may show up, but refuse to accept it. Get it out of your mind and out of your house. You do not have to hold on to fear. God calls us to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. (Ephesians 6:10)
Jehoshaphat did not allow fear to paralyze him. He called the people together to fast, and then sought the Lord for help. He prayed, “…O Lord God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no one is able to withstand You?...” (2 Chronicles 20:6) Jehoshaphat did not run but went to His God whom he knew could save and deliver His people and change their circumstances. He ended his prayer with, “…we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You.” And the response God gave them through one of His servants was, “…Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s…You will not need to fight in this battle…stand still and see the salvation of the Lord…”
When your faith is on display and everything you believe in as a child of God is being tested, run to God, seek your Creator, your Healer, your Deliverer, your Redeemer. Don’t run from Him, run to Him and pass your tests.
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