However passive you proclaim to be, I can imagine that there will always be something that you would be willing to fight and die for. Most of the time, that something has two arms that wrap around you to give you hugs. I remember the story about the mother who fought off a burglar to protect her children and ended up shooting the man to his death. They actually wanted to convict her because she should have done less defending of her loved ones without taking the attacker's life. She ended up being found innocent. There are all sorts of real life stories such as this that take place every day. Most, we never even hear of. I believe there is something deep inside each of us that is willing to rise up and fight when something becomes important enough to us. Please open your Bible and read Deuteronomy 20 or just click here.
In verses 1-4 we read, "When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you. When you are about to go into battle, the priest shall come forward and address the army. He shall say: “Hear, Israel: Today you are going into battle against your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not panic or be terrified by them. For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.” God commanded them to fight. He was holding out the victory before them but they had to reach out and take it. He reminded them that they would not be alone in this fight. Just as I blogged about yesterday, God promises to go with us and fight for us in our battles. We do need to understand that the battles may not always go the way we had intended. I don't think it is necessarily God's will to get you out of that speeding ticket when you were breaking a rule that was actually put in place to protect lives. And as much as you think you need to win the lottery to get out of debt, He's probably not going to just hand over the numbers to you. He may not even seem to be helping you in the middle of a terrible lawsuit where you end up being found guilty but were truly innocent. But He does promise to go with you. He will fight for you too, but sometimes we just won't like the outcome of the fight. Our lives are all about God's greater good.
In this chapter we read that some of those Israelites who were going to war would not make it home. There will be lives lost for the sake of the greater good. This is a hard truth. There will be victory but there will also be casualties along the way. But we must also remember, God will be with us and will fight for us, even in death. This is where we can remember Jesus. God sent His son, Jesus to fight for us. He lived, died and was resurrected so that anyone who believes in Him shall not die but live forever in Heaven with God. This is still Victory. But we don't always look at it that way.
I remember a study that Beth Moore did a few years ago where she brought us the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abendego. They were told to bow down and worship other gods or be thrown into the fire. In Daniel 3:16-18, they told King Nebechednezzar, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” The response of these three courageous men of God has ALWAYS been one of my favorite, inspiring verses in the Bible. The God we serve is able to deliver us from it...BUT EVEN IF HE DOES NOT....we will not serve your gods. These words fill me with so much confidence and determination. I know my God is completely able, but even if He doesn't I will trust Him because His plans are greater. I can apply this to any area of my life and find peace. Beth Moore talked about the three ways God can deliver us.
1. We can be delivered from the fire - God will rescue us out of the fire and we will not have to be burned.
2. We can be delivered through the fire - God will use the burns to help grow us or fulfill His greater purpose.
3. We can be delivered by the fire and right into His arms - God will allow us to die in the flames but we will find victory with Him in heaven.
I guess I should mention this here. Sometimes we lose people we desperately wanted to stay here on Earth with us. We may wonder where God was in some of our lowest difficulties and greatest losses. He was still there fighting. I believe that He is always with us but sometimes we don't realize it when we don't get the answer to prayers we wanted. Please know that even if you have lost someone who you were really fighting for, sometimes the answer really is that they win. They get to leave this world full of sorrows and troubles. We may feel the pain of that absence but they are full of complete joy in the presence of God. Are we able to see God fighting for us even in are darkest times and even when we think He is not hearing our prayers? We are called to fight. And He promises to go with us. He promises to fight for us. There will be victory. It just won't always end the way we imagined. But God is still good.
I realize that a diet pales in comparison to some of the other big life issues that people have to face every day. But this is my battle right now. If something is important enough to you, you will fight for it. My health and living life to the fullest, the way God intended for me, is worth the fight. So, today I choose to fight. I know I will not walk alone. I also know that it won't be easy. I may not find total victory the way I would like here on Earth but someday, I will be completely victorious in heaven. All my flaws will be perfected and I wonder if He may even remind me with great pride, all the times I chose to fight with and for Him. I will continue to fight for breakthrough and to overcome my battle of the bulge, but even if I don't lose as much weight as I want, I know that I will find victory just in choosing His ways above my ways.
Father, I know You are completely able. I trust Your plans. I trust Your will. I am confident that You hvae the power to break the chains that have bound me for so long. I desire to be healthy and to move on walking this new life with you. But even if you don't break me completely of my sin issues and I don't lose all of the weight I would hope, I will not bow down to this food idol any longer. I will still trust you. I will still worship You alone. I will still fight. Thank You that You never leave us nor forsake us. You are good. You are good. You are good. Please help those who ahve had their hearts broken by the tragedies and sorrows of this world. May they remember You were walking with them then and are still right there beside them even now so they do not ever have to walk this road alone. Amen.
Now Choose Life.
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