Morning by Morning, July 11 - “David Strengthened Himself in the Lord His God” Good morning, Lord Jesus. Help me begin my day grounded in Your Word and filled with Your Spirit. ... As I wait for Your leading this morning, I’m mindful of so many who have been reaching out for prayer in desperate circumstances--battling doubts, wracked with questions, even struggling in faith. And I’ve been led to share with them a story from one of the darkest times of King David’s life. Not when he sinned with Bathsheba, but when we was almost stoned to death by his own people, surrounded by such grief and sorrow of losing all they had with no hope in sight: “So David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive. Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep. And David’s two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite, had been taken captive. Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God” (1 Samuel 30:3-6). That’s the key to the turnaround: “But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God” (v. 6). “David inquired of the Lord” (v. 8). He sought You. He pursued You. He pressed into You as deeply as he could, trusting in You no matter what was to come. In deep humility, he willingly chose to be desperately dependent upon You alone. Not on what the people around him were saying and doing or failing to say or failing to do. He turned to You. He inquired of You. He strengthened himself in You. And You told him to get up out of his grief and “pursue” his enemies. As David asked, You answered. You said, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all” (v. 8). So he did. Some went with him and some did not (v. 10). But he listened for strategy. And You turned things around in his favor from places and people he didn’t expect along the way (v. 11-15). You gave him a strategy and supernatural strength to overcome his enemies and take back all that was stolen from him and him people (v. 16-17). “So David recovered all.... And nothing of theirs was lacking, either small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything which they had taken from them; David recovered all” (v. 18-19). Today, in our everyday lives, our true enemies are not human flesh and blood, but the spiritual forces of wickedness coming against us, whether using the sin and flesh of human beings or not in the process: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” (Ephesians 6:12). You are “the whole armor of God.” You’re our Helmet of Salvation, our Breastplate of Righteousness, our Belt of Truth, our Shoes of Peace, our Sword of the Spirit, our Shield of Faith” (Ephesians 6:14-17). You’re the One who moves us to be “praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit,” persisting in “perseverance” through the battles, no matter how intense (v. 18). That’s how we strengthen ourselves in the Lord. That’s how we keep getting up to pursue You and pursue our spiritual enemies with Your strategies, desperately dependent upon the power of Your grace, until we take all what stolen from us. So give us grace to keep strengthening ourselves in the Lord--not just at the times of grief and doubt, not just at the times of battle or what feels like defeat in the moment or the season, but every moment of every day. Help us keep in communion with You--in worship, in prayer, grounded in Your Word every day, filled with Your Spirit every day (Ephesians 5:18). Our spiritual enemies, ever-present in every spiritual battle, are not going away any time soon, but neither are You! You’re with us “always” (Matthew 28:20). You’re never leaving us or forsaking us (Hebrews 13:5). You’re right here with us to empower us to overcome, no matter what comes against us (Isaiah 43:2). You’re fighting for us in ways we don’t always know, with us in ways we don’t always feel, shaping us into Your character and developing us into Your nature in ways we’re not always aware. “We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed--always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body” (2 Corinthians 4:7-10). “And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:3-5). In that way, even what was intended for evil or for our harm, You can turn around for good in Your way and in Your time (Genesis 50:20; Romans 8:28). In ways we can never prevail in our own power or wisdom, You give us the grace to learn what it means in in the Promise of Your Word: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6). Give us that perspective that gets us through the battles. Give us that Spirit that keeps us lifting our eyes and hearts to You--humbly, desperately depending on You alone--as we strengthen ourselves in the Lord. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. Be encouraged today. In the love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My friend, may you be strengthened in the Lord our God every day, ready for every battle that comes, and ready to recover all the enemy has taken, in Jesus' name. Amen. God bless you, my friend! And you have a great day!
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries 502 North Milam Street Fredericksburg, Texas 78624
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“Setting hearts free to be all they were created to be —Free to Be Like Jesus— secure in their identity, growing in maturity, fulfilling their destiny"
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