Before It Is Ever Fought

Sun Su is attributed with many sayings. One that is quite often quoted is, “Every battle is won or lost before it is ever fought.” One of the meanings of this statement speaks to preparedness. We must be prepared to fight our spiritual enemy as well. And when we are, then we will win. Not because of us, but because of God. The battle is His.

2 Chronicles 20:14 Then upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, came the Spirit of the Lord in the midst of the congregation;
15 And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s.

There are several interesting points about the story quoted here. One is that this is the only recorded instance of this prophet actually speaking. But there are countless times where we see the Father defending His children. The saying is true, but Yahuah said it first.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our King. Praise the name Yahuah! Send us today Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us our sins. Heal us from the inside. Deliver us from the evil that steals and destroys. restore one hundred times one hundred fold. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

See What We Look To See

Currently when we look around us, we see a world. That world may appear good or bad to us. Whatever the state, if we want it to change, it is up to us to make that change happen. But that can seem like a daunting task. There are so many things around us committed to making our world not change. How do we overcome these things? With the same plan that has been laid out from the beginning. Moses was the first to state it more clearly.

Dueteronomy 30:9 And the Lord thy God will make thee plenteous in every work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy land, for good: for the Lord will again rejoice over thee for good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers:
10 If thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law, and if thou turn unto the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul.
11 For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off.
12 It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it?
13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it?
14 But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.

We can change it by repeating what God says, over and over again.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are King. Bless the name Yahuah! Send us today Your overwhelming provision! Forgive us our sins. Heal up our hearts and spirits, that we might serve You in gladness. deliver us from the one that is and has stolen from us. Restore unto us one hundred times one hundred fold, and hundreds of hundreds. We ask these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

A New Day

Today I was thinking about the need for a change. That change could be one of many things. Weather, financial situations, places to live, transportation – all these came to mind. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that there was one common denominator. Me. I am the common denominator to all changes in my life. I have to change.

Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

The change happens first in my mind. It is then reflected into my body. But what about the idea that God loves me where I am? that is true. It does not mean that we are not called to change. On the contrary, it means our Father loves us enough to encourage us to change and to walk with us through the change process.

Philippians 1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

Today, let us cry out to the Father Yahuah (Lord) and ask for His help to change.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You are King. We are excitedly anticipating Your kingdom. We need You. Bless the name Yahuah! Send us now Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us our sins. Heal us from all our infirmities. Deliver us from the thief that is stealing from us even now. Restore unto us one hundred times one hundred times one hundred fold, and hundreds of hundreds. We ask these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

Longing For The Rest

There are times in our walks that we are faced with the challenge of no rest. Perhaps our employer requires us to work seven days a week. It could be that we are in the armed services at war, and we are being shot at. Or we could be on the brink of losing everything, and have to stay in the battle until we have our deliverance. This latter condition is just the spiritual side of the case of being at physical war. My writing today is dedicated to all those that find themselves in this situation. Never give up, never give in! One day soon, Yahuah (Lord) will give us the opportunity to gain rest as well.

Hebrews 4:9 There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
10For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
11 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

We long for the rest. The rest here refers to the weekly Sabbath, in Greek. Our Father will get us out of the battle and in to the DMZ for a time of rest. But until that time, we must fight every moment like we did in the first few moments of battle.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You are our King. Let Your kingdom be with us. Send us now Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us our sins. Heal our hearts, for we are a broken people. Deliver us from the evil that has stolen and is stealing from us. Restore today one hundred times one hundred fold, and hundreds of hundreds. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

By Force

We are not meant to go into the night in a meek and sullenly manner. We are meant to be warriors. We are meant to be winners. Sometimes it can be easy to forget. We might not remember all that has gone before us. We might not remember that our Father has said He would never leave or forsake us. We might forget that our Messiah said that the kingdom belongs to the violent. We need to be those violent ones that take the kingdom.

Matthew 11:12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.

We are meant to be warriors for our God and Messiah. We do not give in or give up. The weapons are not the physical weapons of war, but spiritual. Today, when you have a chance to stick the heart of the enemy, whisper in his ear, “The violent take it by force!”

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You are our King. Send the reign of Your kingdom today. Give us today Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us our sins. Heal us. Deliver us from the evil that the enemy places upon us, stealing what You have provided. Raise us up. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

Glad For Change

Imagine a world where nothing ever changed. Everything remained the same. What would that world look like? Certainly not like our world in any way. While we may at times lament that nothing changes in our life, this is not correct. If nothing else, there is the passage of time and we get older. For some, that may well be most of what changes. In that case, we see only what seems to be the same. So then, if we are lamenting the lack of “newness” in our lives, the lack of change, what then? What shall we do? Change. Impact others for God in a positive way. There is a simple parable that speaks to the need for us to actively involved in change.

Matthew 25:31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

As we see this parable, some things are obvious. Both groups of people had the ability and the opportunity to impact the world for the Messiah. One group took care of their fellow man, and one did not. One group took their possesions and their substance, and impacted the lives of others, and one group did not. Only one group did well in the presence of the King.

Which group do you want to be a part of one day? One thing is for certain, if you are taking the same actions as one of the groups, then you will get the same reward eventually.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You are our King. We need Your kingdom. We need You. Praise the name Yahuah! Send us today Your abundant blessing of provision such that it overwhelms us. We are desperate for Your healing and Your deliverance. The enemy is diligently working to destroy Your people. He is stealing from us. Help us, Father. We are crying out to You for Your mercy and Your love. Destroy the evil workings. Lift us up that we might lift up our neighbors. We ask these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

The Battle Cry

In America, as in many lands, there has been from time to time a cry to battle. “To arms! To arms!” Yet our battle is not against fellow man. When we are driven to our knees, we deceive our enemy, for then we are most powerful.

2 Corinthians 10:4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

We can win if we can pray and turn.

2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Take up arms, my brothers and sisters! Fight our true foe on your kness. Our Father will defeat all enemies!

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You are King. Let Your kingdom reign! Praise the name of Yahuah! Send us today Your provision, pressed down, shaken together, and overflowing! Forgive us our sins. Heal our brokenness. Deliver us from the evil that is trying to blot out Your name by destroying us. Crush these works to powder and blow them away in the whirlwind! Show us a sign for good, that all men might know that You alone have done this, that You alone, Yahuah our King, Are God! Do it today. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesu). Amen.

Holding On, Holding Up

Mostly we are a people that love to serve our God, and our fellow believer. Sometimes, however, we may find it is a struggle to lay down our our desires and pride to help our fellow man. We are human, and with humanity comes sin. But there may be a middle ground where we can move to if we cannot be actively helping someone. It would not be a place where you would want to stay because chances are, you would slip and fall to a place where you actively turn away from helping another person. This is a place in between. A place where we do no harm.

1 Chronicles 4:10 And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested.

If we cannot do good at the moment, then we should pray that we do no harm while we are working toward the ability to do good to our neighbors. Our Father will here us, and help us.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You are King. Praise the name Yahuah! Send us Your overwhelming provision. Heal us. Deliver us from the thief. We ask these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

Plodding Is Still Moving

There have been moments in my walk when I have felt like not much was happening. One day upon another, one hour upon another, all seeming to run together. But then, that is a part of the point. They are running on. They are continuing. The future continues to move forward. We continue to add days to our past. We can be happy with the blessing of knowing that as each day moves forward, we are one day closer to the return of our Messiah. We are one day closer to eternity where we will have the final victory. We will be able one day to look back, dry our tears, and see that from the beginning, our Father had a plan for us to live and not die. He had a plan for us each to be made whole with no tears and no regrets any longer.

2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
14 Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.
15 And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;

We long for that day.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our King. We long for You and Your kingdom. Praise the name Yahuah! Send us now Your overwhelming provision. We ask you forgive us our sins. Heal up Your broken people. Deliver us from the evil that steals from us even as we sleep. Rise up, my King! Come and crush these works in my sight. Let all the people of the earth know that You alone are King, that there is no other King on this earth, and that You alone are the Caregiver for Your people. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.