HOW TO WIN YOUR BATTLES!

BIBLE PASSAGE:
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.’
(2 Chronicles 20:15)

MEDITATION:
When you were in grammar or high school, were you ever bullied by
a classmate? No matter how much you tried to befriend the person,
He or she continued bullying you. Sometimes at night, you might have
tried to think of how you could become friends with them, or maybe
you thought you should fight back and deal with the consequences.
You may have even thought,
    “I wish I had a good strong friend
      who could fight this battle for me”

King Jehoshaphat had a similar situation. He was warned
that he and his people were about to be attacked by a huge army.
    Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army
    is coming against you from Edom, from the other side
    of the Dead Sea. It is already in Hazezon Tamar”
    (2 Chronicles 20:2)

What was Jehoshaphat going to do? How could he and his people
defend themselves against a vast army? The attacking army wasn’t
far away, so it was too late to recruit and train enough men to repel
the oncoming threat. So, what did Jehoshaphat do? He went to the
One capable of giving them victory.
    Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of
    the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah.
    (2 Chronicles 20:3)

He also involved the people of Judah in seeking help from the Lord.
    The people of Judah came together to seek help
    from the LORD; indeed, they came from every
    town in Judah to seek him.
    (2 Chronicles 20:4)

It wasn’t just the men involved, but entire families participated.
    All the men of Judah, with their wives and
    children and little ones, stood there before
    the LORD.
    (2 Chronicles 20:13)

How did the Lord respond to Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah?
Through the son of Zechariah (Jahaziel), He told them there was no
need to be afraid or become discouraged, because He would fight the
battle for them.
    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.
    (2 Chronicles 20:15)

Imagine the relief all the people felt when they received this message
from the Lord. God Himself would take care of the ‘bully’ army that
planned on attacking them! Wow! They went to God and He responded!
God even gave them instructions of what to do and assured them that
He would ‘win’ the battle for them.
    Tomorrow march down against them. They will be
    climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them
    at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. You will
    not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand
    firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, Judah
    and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go
    out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.’”
    (2 Chronicles 20:16-17)

They were all humbled by His response and worshipped
Him for blessing them in the midst of an oncoming storm.
    Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground,
    and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down
    in worship before the LORD.
    (2 Chronicles 20:18)

Jehoshaphat reminded them that just hearing what God would
do was not enough, they all had a responsibility of having faith
that He would do what He told them He would do.
    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.”
    (2 Chronicles 20:20)

What was the result of them seeking God and having faith
that He would give them victory over a huge army? God
not only fought the battle for them, but He gave them a
resounding victory!
    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.
    (2 Chronicles 20:24)

A wise Bible teacher once said,
    “Sooner or later God will bring self-sufficient people
      to the place where they have no resource but Him;
      no strength, no answers, nothing but Him. Without
      God’s help, they’re sunk.”

He then told of a despairing man who confessed to his pastor,
    “My life is really in bad shape.”
The pastor asked him,
    “How bad?”
Burying his head in his hands, he moaned,
    “I’ll tell you how bad—all I’ve got left is God.”
The pastor’s face lit up and he said,
    “I’m happy to assure you that a person with nothing
      left but God has more than enough for great victory!”

ACTION:
God may have wanted you specifically to see His message today.
Are you in a battle right now? Maybe you are having issues
with family members. Perhaps you are feeling pressures at
work, or you might be overwhelmed with the responsibilities
of raising a family.

You could be dealing with discouragement or depression. Are
you battling sickness or pain? Whatever battle you have, are
you trying to win the battle in your own strength? Learn a
lesson from Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah – call on
the Lord. And don’t just call on Him, but have faith in Him,
then listen for His instructions and obey them.

If you are under attack from Satan, do you really think
you are adequately qualified to battle him by yourself?
Call on your best ally and then have faith that He will
fight the battle for you, and that He will give you victory!

Too often we pray,
    “Lord, HELP ME fight against Satan and his temptations”
It’s never a bad thing to ask for God’s help, but maybe we
should be praying,
    “Lord, fight Satan and his temptations FOR ME”

We would like to think we are strong enough to fight against
Satan and avoid ‘bothering’ the Lord, but the truth is we are
just not strong enough, are we? We can recall the times we
have failed in our own efforts, and how it caused us to become
discouraged by an overwhelming guilt of ‘letting the Lord down’.

We have to remember that just as a parent wants their children
to be able to depend on them, our heavenly Father wants our
‘dependence’ and not our ‘independence’.

We may have good intentions of proving to the Lord (and ourselves)
that we can reject Satan’s temptations. However, when we feel we are
strong enough to fight Satan ‘independently’, it can cause us to think
we don’t need as much of the Lord in our lives…and that’s never a
good thought for us to have.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for Your availability to fight
my battles for me. I know that I am not strong enough to
defeat the evil one in my own strength. Satan has an arsenal
of weapons he can use against me and without You by my side,
I don’t stand a chance of being victorious over him. Teach me
to not only call on You for help, but to also have faith that You
will win my battles for me, with or without my involvement. I
love You Lord and I thank You for Your love and protectiveness
of me whenever I call on You. Teach me to be dependent and
not independent”

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