Tried and True

  The top image is the new Canadian TACV made by Textron Industries. The second image is that of the new American Tac Vehicle, made by Oshkosh Industries.

 

 

 

 

Why am I showing these? Simple! As you are familiar with, we all look to improve – whether it is a new diet; a new wardrobe, or a new and improved (fill in the blank). The same is with all the major militaries in the world – provided they have the money..well, let that read: have tax payer dollars that they go ahead and spend!!! In the realm of the military, it is very important to always stay on the cutting edge of technology – so that you remain ahead of the “enemy”. For all my years in, there was a constant clamour for new weapons, new gear, new this or new that. Change was as guaranteed as federal deficits!!

In the spiritual realm, the warrior for the King of Kings has a VERY different reality. We serve an unchanging God. The Bible tells us that “Jesus is the same, yesterday, today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8) In the Old Testament, there are numerous verses that tell us of how our God – the ONLY true God, never changes. The Psalms tell us that His mercies are NEW every morning; but, His laws, His commandments and His will NEVER does! Let’s take a quick look at the famous “armor of God” passage in Ephesians 6 (10-18).

Every item listed was designed by God, therefore there is NEVER a need for an upgrade!! They have withstood the test of time and will ALWAYS do exactly what He intended for us!! We only need to put them on and USE them! Why do we put them on?…”…to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand”!!!!! THAT is the reason and the proof is there whenever we ACT in faith to stand! It stood the test for David, Paul, John Wesley, and countless many within the “cloud of witnesses”  from Old Testament time to this modern day. EVERY SINGLE BELIEVER THAT WEARS IT AND WIELDS THE WEAPONS HE PROVIDES…..WILL STAND!!!  I don’t need to worry if they work in this day or my situation. I don’t have to doubt that they are effective for the “new” wiles of the evil one…afterall, his devious schemes may change per each individual, but the shield will quench EVERY dart he hurls…if we obey and believe. The helmet of our salvation will ALWAYS deflect every hammering blow of his slimy sword of deception! Our sword of TRUTH will ever be the needed weapon to dispel lies, rumours, gossip and defamation.  

Will we have to “upgrade”? NO! Will they still work for my situation – (you fill in whatever you are facing)? YES!!!!! God promised His people waaaay back in Deuteronomy that the enemy will be defeated…by HIM!!!! (Deuteronomy 28:7) Remember something…this verse says the enemy WILL arise…so don’t get all glib and big-headed in your faith…BUT…God WILL give a victory…even if that means death…we still win! Until the day we are caught up to meet Him, STAND!! TRUST that His armor and weapons are the very best! In my day, my rifle changed to newer; my boots, my webbing, my helmet and even my uniform all changed to newer….BUT! the “flag” I fought under never did! The same goes for us. WE still fight for ONLY the God of Heaven and Earth and His “gear” is the very best of the best! Warrior on! my dear fellow believers. We may stumble, we may even fall for a time….but rest assured, if we are constant in Him, He WILL raise us up to fight on. TRUST His TRIED and TRUE gear!!!

THE SACRED DELIGHT – the 4th Beatitude..Drink and live!!

Ready to play Survivor? No, I don’t mean the TV show. I mean for real! I will take your silence as agreement! lol   Alright! Now, some of you may have read waaay back  in my blog to some of the Wilderness Survival posts. Well, a wee wrinkle now I throw! YOU are stranded. The building that you were in has been hit by and earthquake.

It has crumbled down to rubble and you are way down underneath it all. There is no imminent rescue in sight. There is also NO water source anywhere.  You have NO digging instrument of any kind. Now, I know that without water, you will die in 2-3 days MAX. What do you do to “buy” yourself about 5 more days? Anyone? Hmmm. I can hear all kinds of answers. Are you SURE you want the answer? However you can, open a small cut and drink about 3 ounces of your own blood every day. That’s right…your own blood will give you a wider window of rescue time! Keep that in mind as we look at this 4th Beatitude in Matthew 5.

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
⁴ Blessed are those who mourn,
    For they shall be comforted.
⁵ Blessed are the meek,
    For they shall inherit the earth.
⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    For they shall be filled.

That about sums up this 4th building block in our re-construction by God!

Jesus is reclining with the disciples for the last meal He will have with them. In His teachings, He takes the cup of wine before Him and raises it. I can imagine His eyes roving over each one of the disciples as He says: 

²⁰ Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.

That sure must have puzzled the disciples. They were Jews. They knew of the history of the shedding of blood. They knew of the  lamb whose blood was applied over the doorways of their homes. For thousands of years, Jews has celebrated Passover by sacrificing lambs. Every year blood was poured. Every year, deliverance was celebrated. The Law that God gave them called for the spilling of blood. That would be enough. It would be enough to fulfill the Law. It would be enough to satisfy the command and it would be enough to appease God’s justice. BUT it would not be enough to take away sin! God alone could accomplish that. Beneath the earthquake rubble of a fallen world, He pierced His hands. In the wreckage of humankind, He ripped open His side. His greatest creation achievement – us, was trapped, so He gave His blood.

Earlier in His ministry, Jesus said that “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and I will give him drink…” 

To the woman at the well, He says that if she keeps coming back to this well every day, she will still be thirsty – every day. If she takes the offer of the water that HE has, she will “never thirst again”.  

But, admission of thirst doesn’t come easy for us does it? Remember before you came to Christ? You tried any and all ways to slake your physical, emotional and mental thirst. For some, it was pleasure; for others, it was power. Each one deceived by the evil one to TEMPORARILY slake that thirst. NOTHING worked did it? Into every life there comes an earthquake and our self made foundations crumble. We are left stranded in the rubble of our own making.  “Lord save me!!” is our cry. The truly thirsty come to Jesus. A ragged bunch are we – bound together by our broken dreams. Our lives crashed like a tumbled house of cards. All that we built has come to nothing – Fortunes never made, families never built and promises never kept. We are empty children trapped in the stove in basement of our own sin. And we were thirsty.

 

“Filled with inexpressible joy are the ones who HUNGER AND THIRST for righteousness, for they shall be FILLED”!!! We are hungering for a clean conscience and a renewed relationship with God. We thirst for a fresh start. That is the foundation of this 4th Beatitude. The first reminds us that we begin the re-construction in Him by admitting our spiritual bankruptcy. Then, He takes us to the place of mourning and anguish over what our sin has done. He restores us to our knees as the meek or available and NOW we have our fresh start in Him! We are to hunger and thirst for the LIVING water that fills to overflowing. Overflowing thanks, overflowing praise and overflowing joy! What a great fresh step toward His re-building of us. 

Let this be our prayer. Please let Him fill you with Him!

 

THE SACRED DELIGHT….Part 1 of the Beatitudes – Intro

I am borrowing the title from Max Lucado’s book “The Applause of Heaven” I pray he doesn’t mind! lol What is the “sacred delight”?  Joy! That word sums up all 8 of the Beatitudes. Let me ask you this question as I begin this post. When was the last time you gave any thought to the imagery of God applauding for you? I will confess right here and now, that for a long time I really had a hard time grasping that truth

I mean, I can see God as Creator of earth and sky. I can see Him hanging the stars in place. I accept Him as Almighty, all knowing, all seeing and in control of it all! I have finally even grown enough through Him to accept that He loves me and made me and even hears me when I call!But, a God who is in love with me? – who, like He does for you,is crazy for us? A God who actually CHEERS for me? That is EXACTLY the message of the Bible!

People!…oh dear readers, know this: Our Heavenly Father is in relentless pursuit of His children! He has called us to Himself with His Spirit and has paved the way home with His own shed blood. He EAGERLY awaits with longing our arrival home!!  Did you get that?…Let me put it in bigger type!

HE EAGERLY AWAITS, WITH LONGING, OUR ARRIVAL HOME!!!

Many of us are familiar with the Sermon on the Mount passage from the Gospel of Matthew. It is found in chapter 5. That teaching to the gathered people begins with what is known to us as the “Beatitudes”. Webster’s Dictionary defines “beatitude” as …” the highest form of happiness or heavenly bliss” In other words, JOY!

So, when you read each one and it begins with “Blessed are those…”  Substitute this: “So FULL of joy are those….” WOW!! That really changes each one for me as I read them with that perspective! I want to share some thoughts about this “sacred delight” or heavenly joy. First, read the passage for yourself:

Matthew 5 (Complete Jewish Bible )

5 Seeing the crowds, Yeshua walked up the hill. After he sat down, histalmidim came to him, ² and he began to speak. This is what he taught them:

³ “How blessed are the poor in spirit!
    for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

⁴ “How blessed are those who mourn!
    for they will be comforted.

⁵ “How blessed are the meek!
    for they will inherit the Land!^[a]

⁶ “How blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness!
    for they will be filled.
⁷ “How blessed are those who show mercy!
    for they will be shown mercy.

⁸ “How blessed are the pure in heart!
    for they will see God.

⁹ “How blessed are those who make peace!
    for they will be called sons of God.

¹⁰ “How blessed are those who are persecuted
because they pursue righteousness!
    for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

“I have everything I need for joy”. What a wonderful quote! It was penned by Robert Reed. His hands were twisted, his feet were withered and useless. He couldn’t bathe himself or feed himself. He couldn’t brush his teeth or hair. His clothes were fastened with Velcro. His speech dragged and was slurred. Robert had Cerebral Palsy – a disease that prevented him from driving a car or riding a bicycle or walking in the woods. 

It didn’t stop him from graduating from Abilene Christian College or teaching in St. Louis. It didn’t prevent him from 5 overseas missions trips. It couldn’t stop him from moving by himself to Portugal, finding a home above a restaurant where he arranged for the owner to provide  him meals after the dinner rush. Every day, he would station himself in the park and just by striking up conversations with people; was used by God over a 6 year period to see 70 people accept Jesus Christ as Savior! He was able to say “I have everything I need for joy”. His clothes may have been held together by Velcro, but his life was held together by joy! THAT is the message of the Beatitudes – to be FILLED with a sacred delight! Stay tuned! Next post will be Beatitude #1. Filled with sacred delight are the poor in spirit! 

Biblical Battle Tactics: I WANT TO BE JUST LIKE DAD…OH NO YOU DON’T!!!!!

  When we were kids, we wanted to be just like Dad….right? For some, that might have been the case. For others, myself included, I wanted to be the exact OPPOSITE. We all know that we learn by watching the examples of our parents. The  old expression – “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree”  is fairly accurate. We end up being more like our parent(s) than we want to admit…especially to ourselves! I just finished a post the other day about being an example…and having examples to follow. When we realize that we are in the days of spiritual battle like never before, we need to look to examples! Sometimes, our Commander wants us to look at examples of how NOT to live and be a warrior for Him.  

Okay, let me set the stage. It has been 200 years since King David reigned over ONE kingdom of God’s people. Since that time, sin caused the once “Promised Land”, set aside for GOD’S CHOSEN PEOPLE to become divided into the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. The southern kingdom  – Judah, had a mix of godly and ungodly kings. Israel, the northern kingdom had ALL bad kings. So, now onto the scene of history comes Ahaz. His name is actually Jehoahaz, which in Hebrew means “Possession of the Lord”! Wow!!! did his parents misname him! He was anything BUT a possession of the Lord. 

This man was a complete failure as a king –  militarily, socio-economically and especially spiritually! The Bible says that “he did not do what was right in the sight of the Lord” What an understatement!! That is like saying that after stepping on a landmine “Oh! that is going to leave a scratch!” Ahaz not only did not serve the Lord God, he went completely the other way. Look at the passage and try not to gasp!:

2 Chronicles 28:1-4Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

28 Achaz was twenty years old when he began his reign, and he ruled sixteen years in Yerushalayim. But he did not do what was right from the perspective of Adonai, as David his ancestor had done. ² Rather, he lived in the manner of the kings of Isra’el and made cast metal images for the ba‘alim. ³ Moreover, he made offerings in the Ben-Hinnom Valley and even burned up his own children as sacrifices, in keeping with the horrible practices of the pagans, whom Adonaihad thrown out ahead of the people of Isra’el. ⁴ He also sacrificed and offered on the high places, on the hills and under any green tree.

I realize that sin should never be ranked…BUT…verse 3 kind of leapt out at me!! HE BURNED HIS OWN CHILDREN AS SACRIFICES. This is the king!! This is the one who is supposed to lead the people of God into closer relationship with Adonai –  the Lord God of all! Yeah, he did just a swell job of that! Now, let’s not stop there in your sin, dear king. PLEASE go even further in your depraved and debauched journey to hell! How about adding CLOSING THE TEMPLE! Then add STEALING THE TREASURES OF THE TEMPLE. Oh, oh!!! NO, he doesn’t stop there! Read it!!!!:

¹⁹ The Lord brought trouble on Judah because Ahaz their king led the people of Judah to sin, and he was unfaithful to the Lord. ²⁰ Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came to Ahaz, but he gave Ahaz trouble instead of help. ²¹ Ahaz took some valuable things from the Temple of the Lord, from the palace, and from the princes, and he gave them to the king of Assyria, but it did not help.

²² During Ahaz’s troubles he was even more unfaithful to the Lord. ²³ He offered sacrifices to the gods of the people of Damascus, who had defeated him. He thought, “The gods of the kings of Aram helped them. If I offer sacrifices to them, they will help me also.” But this brought ruin to Ahaz and all Israel.

²⁴ Ahaz gathered the things from the Temple of God and broke them into pieces. Then he closed the doors of the Temple of the Lord. He made altars and put them on every street corner in Jerusalem. ²⁵ In every town in Judah, Ahaz made places for burning sacrifices to worship other gods. So he made the Lord, the God of his ancestors, very angry.

Are you keeping “score” at all? This man is so evil and bent on obeying Satan, we might as well rename him Barack Obama!!  OOPS…did I make a modern day comparison? You are doggone right I did!  Okay, anyway, back to the story. God was so angry at the disobedience of His people that they were utterly vanquished by TWO different nations, who divided the spoils and put the people into captivity. Ahaz died and was buried……but NOT in the place where the other kings were buried! He even forfeited that. I can’t even imagine the level of hell he is presently suffering in! His son, Hezekiah takes over the throne. The very FIRST thing he did…in the first month of his reign, was to open the temple and clear out the garbage—-idols and altars to foreign gods…oh who am I kidding? they were altars to satan!. That house cleaning of the Temple took 16 days! Hezekiah was NOT like Daddy. He did right in the sight of the Lord. He chose to follow the example of his great(however many “greats” needed) grandfather David.

 So…. that is a neat story you say, but…uh…how does that fit into my learning Biblical Battle Tactics you say. Well, hunker down soldier and let’s take a look. Ahaz made error after error. Those “errors” were sins. I won’t mince words here. This isn’t  any “Celebrate Recovery” garbage that calls sins “hurts, habits and hangups”!!! SIN IS SIN.

Another gloves off statement is this, soldier, WHEN…not if, because we are all in this boat from time to time – you sin, it is by YOUR CHOICE. No Flip Wilson cop out statement of  “The devil made me do it” We CAN be as vile as Ahaz!! “Oh no!!!” you vehemently protest. “I could NEVER be like that!!” Really? WAKE UP SOLDIER!!!  We fight the temptation every single day to erect our idols…oh yes we do! YOU know yours. I don’t and I won’t go into a list….but we have them. ANYTHING OR ANYONE who takes first place instead of God for even a day!!!!…is an idol. It can be your spouse, your kids, your job. ANYTHING!!!  “Okay”, you reply…”I’ll give you that…BUT, I would NEVER burn my children as sacrifices to an idol or false god!!!” Really? What do you call NOT disciplining? What do you call allowing them to watch demonic shows or play violent games on their systems? THEY CAN SPIRITUALLY KILL your kids. Think I am being too harsh?  The Apostle Paul really sums up what we are like:

We are warriors!! We are called to serve the King of Kings – not some evil doing poor facsimile. NOT ONE SINGLE HUMAN are we to emulate OVER Jesus Christ! HE is our example. HE is our Father that we are to strive to be like. Our statement should read like this: 

As we grow stronger in Him, as we become more mature and more capable warriors, we start to act like Jesus! Our devotion, service and goal is Him! So, today! (for me it is the evening of Sabbath) TEAR DOWN YOUR IDOLS! STOP “SACRIFICING YOUR CHILDREN”, STOP STEALING WHAT IS GOD’S AND GIVING IT TO UNBELIEVERS. Most of all, be a stalwart soldier that serves ONLY the King of Kings and Lord of Lords! 

WHAT’S IN A NAME?….Biblical Battle Tactics…Who has YOUR six?

Sorry about the long title. I really needed to have both concepts of this teaching out there right off.  In learning about the kings who ruled the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah, I really see so many military AND spiritual warfare truths. First, permit me to comment further on the term I used just one sentence ago. “Divided kingdoms”. Wow! what a sad, sad statement. Keep in mind that it was NEVER God’s intent that the “promised land” that He promised to Abraham and his descendants for all time; was to be divided! The reason it had come to that? There are all kinds of theories, postulations and cause-effect rationales. One word really sums it up though – SIN. Man!! when we go ahead and fail to follow God’s righteous rules for our lives, the damage and long term effects are harsh!

Alright, now, have you ever thought about what your name meant? Most countries do place importance on the meaning of the names they give their children. We have all had moments of real grace when it was all we could do not to laugh at some person’s choice for a name. I have long had to stifle it when I hear someone named their daughter Rianna or some variation. To me, knowing French that sounds like the French word “rien” which means “nothing”. Nice choice parents! lol . Back in the Old Testament, a person’s name really meant something. What does yours mean? Have you ever checked? Do you live up to it? I really strive and pray that I live up to mine.

The king we are going to look at today is Baasha. His name meant “boldness”. Well, he sure lived up to that!  

Did you read the inscription on the picture above? NOT an example of a Godly king!. Okay, on to the story. King Nadab was ruling in Israel. Like every king before and after him, he “did evil in the sight of the Lord”. Imagine! Not one king in all of Israel after David’s descendant lost the kingdom and it divided, ever did right in God’s sight! Well, Nadab was in good company. He was an evil man as well.

Nadab King of Israel

²⁵ Nadab son of Jeroboam became king of Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. ²⁶ He did evil in the eyes of theLord, following the ways of his father and committing the same sin his father had caused Israel to commit.

²⁷ Baasha son of Ahijah from the tribe of Issachar plotted against him, and he struck him down at Gibbethon, a Philistine town, while Nadab and all Israel were besieging it. ²⁸ Baasha killed Nadab in the third year of Asa king of Judah and succeeded him as king.

²⁹ As soon as he began to reign, he killed Jeroboam’s whole family. He did not leave Jeroboam anyone that breathed, but destroyed them all, according to the word of the Lord given through his servant Ahijah the Shilonite. ³⁰ This happened because of the sins Jeroboam had committed and had caused Israel to commit, and because he aroused the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel.

³¹ As for the other events of Nadab’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel? ³² There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their reigns.

What was Jeroboam’s sin? He was the first king of the divided kingdoms. He basically allowed any and all who were interested, be selected as priests and to do whatever they pleased -be it serve idols, offer sacrifices to whatever pagan they chose etc.  King Nadab was involved in a siege of a Philistine town called Gibbethon or Gibeah. It was a town given to the tribe of Dan and allotted to the Kohathite Levites. In other words, it was a holy city. Somehow, the Philistines had taken possession. So there is King Nadab trying to take it back. He had his army with him – including this delightfully supportive person named Baasha. Now either he was in tight with the king or he was a great shot. Either way, instead of protecting his king -covering his “six” in my language – he kills him. Strike one. He follows this up by choosing himself as king! Strike two. Well!! let’s not stop there in our slide down the razor blade of sinful behavior! He slaughters the entire line of Nadab, Jeroboam’s son! STRIKE THREE! Yer out!!!!!! In chapter 16 of 1 Kings, God pronounces that there would be an end to Baasha’s entire line and  that dogs would eat those of Baasha’s line that died in the city and birds would feast on those who died in the field. God does NOT mess around with sin! We need to remember this! There is NO cheap grace.

So, what is my point with this story? Primarily, that we as His soldiers, always follow ALL His precepts, His commands and His Word. Secondly, when you are in battle with the evil one and all the spiritual warfare we are facing, surround yourself with those who WILL cover your six.

When you are in the middle of spiritual warfare, you can’t afford to be worried about someone taking potshots at you – in the name of the Lord!

Trust the Holy Spirit to guide you in selecting who you have in your life. That could be spouse. That applies to friends. It most certainly applies to whose leadership you sit under to be taught, whether in a church or home group. 

It may be a secular quote, but, it sums up the priority of being of like mind! We ARE in a battle. We ARE facing a powerful foe! Who has your six? Oh I wilalways be there for my fellow warriors…..BUT there is one who “is closer than a brother” who ALWAYS has our back.

That sums it all up! God gives us victory through Christ!! Even if we sacrifice our life for Him. He still wins! Know who is with you on the line, but STAND in confidence as we fight, for HE -the King of Glory is the VICTOR over sin, over death and over hell!

BIBLICAL BATTLE TACTIC: PREPARE FOR WAR IN TIME OF PEACE

There is an ancient Latin saying (possibly attributed first to Plato) that says “SI VIS PACEM, PAR BELLUM”. In English, it means, if you want peace, prepare for war. I also have long found it an interesting little note that we have a famous gun (Luger) that was  called a  parabellum pistol. Anyway, we are going back even further than Plato today. All the way back to around 900 BC – to the reign of King Asa.

King Asa was an iconoclast. We hear that word, but really don’t know what it means. He was the breaker of idols or images! In 2 Chronicles 14, we have the beginning of King Asa’s reign.

14 Abijah died and was buried in Jerusalem. His son Asa became king in his place, and there was peace in the country for ten years during Asa’s time.

Asa King of Judah

² Asa did what the Lord his God said was good and right. ³ He removed the foreign altars and the places where gods were worshiped. He smashed the stone pillars that honored other gods, and he tore down the Asherah idols.⁴ Asa commanded the people of Judah to follow the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and to obey his teachings and commandments. ⁵ He also removed the places where gods were worshiped and the incense altars from every town in Judah. So the kingdom had peace while Asa was king. ⁶ Asa built strong, walled cities in Judah during the time of peace. He had no war in these years, because the Lord gave him peace.

⁷ Asa said to the people of Judah, “Let’s build up these towns and put walls around them. Let’s make towers, gates, and bars in the gates. This country is ours, because we have obeyed the Lord our God. We have followed him, and he has given us peace all around.” So they built and had success.

⁸ Asa had an army of three hundred thousand men from Judah and two hundred eighty thousand men from Benjamin. The men from Judah carried large shields and spears. The men from Benjamin carried small shields and bows and arrows. All of them were brave fighting men.

⁹ Then Zerah from Cush came out to fight them with an enormous army and three hundred chariots. They came as far as the town of Mareshah. ¹⁰ So Asa went out to fight Zerah and prepared for battle in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.

¹¹ Asa called out to the Lord his God, saying, “Lord, only you can help weak people against the strong. Help us, Lord our God, because we depend on you. We fight against this enormous army in your name. Lord, you are our God. Don’t let anyone win against you.”

¹² So the Lord defeated the Cushites when Asa’s army from Judah attacked them, and the Cushites ran away. ¹³ Asa’s army chased them as far as the town of Gerar. So many Cushites were killed that the army could not fight again; they were crushed by the Lord and his army. Asa and his army carried many valuable things away from the enemy. ¹⁴ They destroyed all the towns near Gerar, because the people living in these towns were afraid of the Lord. Since these towns had many valuable things, Asa’s army took them away. ¹⁵ Asa’s army also attacked the camps where the shepherds lived and took many sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.

I know you can read. I am going to just summarize real quick. Asa was on fire for God. There was peace for 10 years. He built up fortified cities and towers. He raised an army of spearmen and archers that totalled 580,000!!  All of this wise strategy and all this preparation for war was in a time of peace. STILL an enemy came out of Cush (modern day Ethiopia). STILL, with all that might and wisdom and obedience to God, what does King Asa do? He PRAYS.  

We can do all the  work we want to in preparation for the coming evil days. We can be called to build places of refuge. We can stockpile foods and materiel. We can get physically fit and ready. BUT we are not going to war with people! We won’t necessarily need to take up arms against a foreign force….I don’t know that, only God will reveal that to us. I DO know that we are already at war!!!! We fight against principalities and powers of the air. (Ephesians 6:12).  We struggle daily with spiritual warfare. YES! we need to be solidly in the Word of God – our sword. YES! we need to have the helmet of truth on and all the other armor. BUT..we are commanded to pray. So many verses in our “command manual”aka the Bible, tell us that. It is our POWER from Him. King Asa knew it. When you want true peace to reign in your heart, prepare for war. How? PRAYER.

 The power of prayer has been proven out both in Scripture and in our own lives hasn’t it? So???? PRAY! Pray for strength. Pray for wisdom. Pray for your fellow soldiers on the line and in the trenches every day battling this evil that pervades our world. To what end? Not to say we “beat” some demon…..nor to say we are victors; for we are already that in Christ. NO, We pray so that God is seen as glorious and so that we can be used to save those the evil one would destroy. 

THESE BOOT ARE MADE FOR ….WHAT?

Some of us are old enough to remember the Nancy Sinatra song “These boot are made for walking”. Well, yeah, of course boots are made for that – except those goofy ones you see sometimes on runway models that look like torture items!. Way back, I did a series of posts on social media about the full armor of God. This post is adapted from that -with a different angle.

The modern soldiers’ boot has come a long way. When I first entered the service, they were these black, stiff and painful things. They were guaranteed to punish your feet for days. Gradually, the Army wised up. Generation after generation of trial and error -at the cost of our feet! lol finally brought them to the standard issue now. 

They are lightweight, reasonably comfortable and durable. Most importantly, they have a good grip on them.

 Our feet are to be shod with the gospel of peace. (Ephesians 6:15)

A few things to clear up.  The word “gospel” in Greek is translated as good news. The Hebrew word “peace” is of course shalom. Hebrew words mean far more than we grasp in English. It really isn’t peace as in the lack of war. It is COMPLETE peace, wholeness, contentment in full! So, permit me to attempt a definition. Here is the good news! The peace of Christ that moves us forward every single step of our soldiering is a COMPLETE, whole, contentment. We are filled with Him in all the duties we are assigned by Him.
Now, here is the kicker (no pun intended). I realized as I described modern day soldiers’ boots, I didn’t say anything about the Roman soldiers’. Oh, they sure didn’t look like ours today…and in fact were far more sinister!

You see, we know about good tread on boots lending us traction. So did the Romans. The bottom of their sandal/boot was studded with pieces of rough metal! It gave them extra solid footing in the mire and blood of a battle. They also had one more harsh purpose: They were used to kick out and slash at an enemies unprotected areas!

I may really be stretching this, but I want to have you keep that image in mind, while I quote this verse: “For we wrestle not with flesh and blood but with evil, with demons, with powers of this world” So, instead of cowering when faced with temptation, or demon visions or even real demons! Kick the living stuffing out of them as you claim the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit!!! We are in battle people against the one who wants to see every single soul NEVER come to Christ! He thinks that is how he can win back his throne! Ha!!!!! Greater is He that is in us than it who is in the world!!!

Ps..addition to post: In Romans 16:20, we are told that “The God of peace will crush satan under your feet shortly” The word “taxei” or soon is really a military term for the short, confident, LOUD march step of the Roman army as they would march through a conquered town! We are to be confident not only in our stand but our living out the gospel of Christ! March in Him and conquer the evil one. It is His promise.

 Pps…thank you to those who have lifted me up in prayer..not fully back on the battle line, but, I can STOMP in His power! God bless and share the Good News wherever He takes you today!

ONE SHOT ONE KILL…..The flip side!

 

Remember a few posts ago, I shared about an ineffective leader? Saul was not a man who chose God’s way for his life. Not much further along in the first book of Samuel we see a new leader emerge that IS appointed by God – David. I want to encourage all you who are warriors for the King of Kings. You stand in the fray of battle day in and day out. Remember this young man, David, and only one of the times he faithfully stood for his God. I Samuel 17:41-51 is the story of one shot one kill. 

⁴¹ At the same time, the Philistine was coming closer to David. The man who held his shield walked in front of him. ⁴² When Goliath looked at David and saw that he was only a boy, tanned and handsome, he looked down on David with disgust. ⁴³ He said, “Do you think I am a dog, that you come at me with a stick?” He used his gods’ names to curse David. ⁴⁴ He said to David, “Come here. I’ll feed your body to the birds of the air and the wild animals!”

⁴⁵ But David said to him, “You come to me using a sword and two spears. But I come to you in the name of the Lord All-Powerful, the God of the armies of Israel! You have spoken against him. ⁴⁶ Today the Lord will hand you over to me, and I’ll kill you and cut off your head. Today I’ll feed the bodies of the Philistine soldiers to the birds of the air and the wild animals. Then all the world will know there is a God in Israel! ⁴⁷ Everyone gathered here will know the Lord does not need swords or spears to save people. The battle belongs to him, and he will hand you over to us.”

⁴⁸ As Goliath came near to attack him, David ran quickly to meet him. ⁴⁹ He took a stone from his bag, put it into his sling, and slung it. The stone hit the Philistine and went deep into his forehead, and Goliath fell facedown on the ground.

⁵⁰ So David defeated the Philistine with only a sling and a stone. He hit him and killed him. He did not even have a sword in his hand. ⁵¹ Then David ran and stood beside him. He took Goliath’s sword out of its holder and killed him by cutting off his head.

The Bible doesn’t tell us why David chose 5 stones -after all, he only needed one. BUT, David did not know that -yet! 

We are never told much about those stones. I have tried to use a sling…near on conked myself! Like any weapon, in the hands of a beginner, it can be dangerous to the user! Training, practice practice practice and oh! did I mention practice? THAT is what it takes. So, here is my suggestion as to the 5 stones.

Stone#1  I just mentioned it –  Preparedness physically. David spent hours and hours with his sling. Besides, there wasn’t exactly Xbox or Youtube for him to while away the hours tending his fathers’ sheep! That practice came in real handy on at least 2 occasions that he mentions to King Saul earlier in 1 Samuel 17. He had killed both a lion and a bear for stealing a sheep!

Stone #2 Planning – David ended up only needing 1 stone, but he took 5. Not a bad plan to have more than one “weapon” when attacking a giant that size (Goliath was over 9 feet tall). 

Stone #3 Passion –  David didn’t go running rashly at this giant. No! David’s passion was based on this “uncircumcized Philistine” mocking the God of Israel! He didn’t agree to fight for a flag, or a creed or an ideal. He was not going to stand by and have the nation of Israel think yet again that God was not God of all! 

Stone #4 Purpose – David had a reason for standing on the line. In verse 37, he tells King Saul that his faith was sure. “The Lord who saved me from the bear and lion, will SURELY save me from this Philistine”. That faith was purpose driven! He did not want the God of Israel mocked or His people shamed.

Stone #5 Precision-guided munitions! -Huh? Yep, David’s one stone was precision guided. Look at the verses:

⁴⁵ But David said to him, “You come to me using a sword and two spears. But I come to you in the name of the Lord All-Powerful, the God of the armies of Israel! You have spoken against him. ⁴⁶ Today the Lord will hand you over to me, and I’ll kill you and cut off your head. Today I’ll feed the bodies of the Philistine soldiers to the birds of the air and the wild animals. Then all the world will know there is a God in Israel! ⁴⁷ Everyone gathered here will know the Lord does not need swords or spears to save people. The battle belongs to him, and he will hand you over to us.” David KNEW that he would be going into not his battle but the LORD’S!!!

 Well, where does that leave us? What do YOU bring into the battle? Do you physically have the stamina? Even people in wheelchairs can exercise. We DO need to be at the best He allows in order to be ready. Do you and the Holy Spirit plan how you will pray and serve? What about passion? Sadly, most Christians -at least here in North America, have more passion for their sport or their possessions than they do their mission. Do you burn with a desire to pray for others? Is your passion REALLY for Him? Do you have a purpose to your days? Is the stone of your purpose one of confidence that says “Surely the Lord who saved me from sin, can also save me from the demonic hordes I face in prayer and service”? Finally, are you carrying the precision-guided stone? Do you believe without a doubt that JESUS CHRIST WINS?? This is NOT our battle to win. We are only called to faithfully serve wherever and however He asks. Today, take your ONE SHOT and watch whatever “giant” you face FALL from God’s ONE KILL. What’s your giant? Only you and the Holy Spirit need to know that. Only YOU need to know He CAN and WILL use you to slay it.   God bless and keep you this day.

HOW TO LOSE A BATTLE… Part 3 ..Disobey a Direct Order

So here we are! I know that I could have really expanded the whole debacle that is the life of King Saul. Chapter after chapter of this man’s life was filled with get right with God moments, followed by sinful blunders. Sounds a lot like me and you on many an occasion, doesn’t it? We think we have it all together; our armor is spit-shine bright and our sword is held aloft….only to fall in fear at a spiritual battle moment or walk off the field in dismay or disillusion. Thankfully, our God is a forgiving Commander and does not always deal with us as we deserve!

Okay, let’s pick up the story again from 1 Samuel 13, starting with verse 5

⁵ The Philistines gathered to fight Israel with three thousand^[b] chariots and six thousand men to ride in them. Their soldiers were as many as the grains of sand on the seashore. The Philistines went and camped at Micmash, which is east of Beth Aven. ⁶ When the Israelites saw that they were in trouble, they went to hide in caves and bushes, among the rocks, and in pits and wells.⁷ Some Hebrews even went across the Jordan River to the land of Gad and Gilead.

But Saul stayed at Gilgal, and all the men in his army were shaking with fear.⁸ Saul waited seven days, because Samuel had said he would meet him then. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the soldiers began to leave.

⁹ So Saul said, “Bring me the whole burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” Then Saul offered the whole burnt offering. ¹⁰ Just as he finished, Samuel arrived, and Saul went to greet him.

¹¹ Samuel asked, “What have you done?”

Saul answered, “I saw the soldiers leaving me, and you were not here when you said you would be. The Philistines were gathering at Micmash. ¹² Then I thought, ‘The Philistines will come against me at Gilgal, and I haven’t asked for the Lord’s approval.’ So I forced myself to offer the whole burnt offering.”

¹³ Samuel said, “You acted foolishly! You haven’t obeyed the command of theLord your God. If you had obeyed him, the Lord would have made your kingdom continue in Israel always, ¹⁴ but now your kingdom will not continue. The Lord has looked for the kind of man he wants. He has appointed him to rule his people, because you haven’t obeyed his command.”

Our boy, Saul, wasn’t leadership material at all. I encourage you read again the whole book of 1 Samuel. At one point, Saul is completely taken over by an evil spirit. We could learn a great deal about how NOT to be a chosen vessel of the Lord by reading about his life! The passage we are looking at, starting in verse 5 reminds us again the situation Israel finds itself in. The enemy – in this case, the Philistines – have amassed a large army and appear ready to stomp all over the kings’ paltry army. Remember, the numerical advantage goes to the Philistines at over 10-1!!  The pressure was on. Any day now, the battle would commence and the slaughter would be awful. Soldiers are deserting left, right and center! The king, in his lack of wisdom and obedience, chooses NOT to wait for Samuel to return…hey! afterall, Samuel SAID 7 days and it was the 7th day…so where was he, huh? So I have a RIGHT to DO something! And he does! He says later to Samuel that he “had to force himself to offer the whole burnt offering”. When you read verse 9, it sure doesn’t sound like any arm twisting went on there!  I hope most of you as readers understand the importance of Saul’s sin. HE was not an appointed priest of Israel. HE was NOT permitted at any time to offer the sacrifices. In this case, as is true in so many examples, leadership does NOT have it’s privileges!

I choose to digress here a moment and talk a bit about leadership. I was a non-com…I enlisted as a cadet and worked my way up to my final rank when I mustered out as a Master Warrant Officer (US equivalent would be a Command Sgt Major). I served under a LOT of officers through my years – some very good and some very dangerous! For me, it was about walking the talk. I would follow someone who truly led by example, through the fiercest hell of battle – no qualms or hesitation. I will confess I did at times wish an early wound or worse on some “leaders” who would have gotten us killed.  Leadership is NOT determined by rank! Many a solid leader, led from near obscurity, BUT their example and actions inspired others. Saul led by his example. He didn’t position himself where the enemy was;  and he didn’t obey HIS commanding officer; which in this case was the Lord God speaking through His prophet Samuel. Many times in our spiritual battles, the order from the Holy Spirit doesn’t appear to make sense. What do you mean Lord, I have to turn down this high paying job? Why CAN’T I do this or that, Lord? But, Lord, that relationship FEELS so right; why shouldn’t I be in it? I will tell you all real plain here…from personal experience. IF we keep on with the “but” parade, He will finally KICK our butts! There will be a “come to Jesus woodshed meeting” and those are NOT pretty.  YOU signed on the dotted line to serve the Lord. YOU declared that you were on board the “AAA” ship – “Anything, Anywhere, Anytime”. THAT is what it means to surrender our will to His. Remember this: it was God’s WILL for John to be exiled on Patmos; for Paul to be imprisoned so

often and for Jesus to be crucified. Why do you think for a minute it is His will for YOU to have a huge house or great paying job or enormous financial portfolio? WE ARE SOLDIERS!  We are to OBEY our Commander.

Saul disobeyed and the kingship passed from his line – to a shepherd boy! God works in His way, in His timing and uses His choice of person for tasks. Are you doing yours? Are you obeying ALL that He asks? If not, take some time right now and recommit your ways to Him. Ask for His mercy for not obeying and get your assignment back on track! I have had to do that! I fail Him so often it is ONLY His mercy, grace and constant willingness to forgive that even keeps me alive! Let us all learn from Saul. Whatever level of leadership you have for Him..remember, we are all bondservants together. WALK THE TALK!

HOW TO LOSE A BATTLE Part 2…Wrong leader, Wrong place and Wrong motives

Let’s look right off the bat at the passage of Scripture again.

1 Samuel 13New Century Version (NCV)

13 Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he was king over Israel forty-two years.^{[a] 2} Saul chose three thousand men from Israel. Two thousand men stayed with him at Micmash in the mountains of Bethel, and one thousand men stayed with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. Saul sent the other men in the army back home.

³ Jonathan attacked the Philistine camp in Geba, and the other Philistines heard about it. Saul said, “Let the Hebrews hear what happened.” So he told the men to blow trumpets through all the land of Israel. ⁴ All the Israelites heard the news. The men said, “Saul has defeated the Philistine camp. Now the Philistines will really hate us!” Then the Israelites were called to join Saul at Gilgal.

⁵ The Philistines gathered to fight Israel with three thousand^[b] chariots and six thousand men to ride in them. Their soldiers were as many as the grains of sand on the seashore. The Philistines went and camped at Micmash, which is east of Beth Aven. ⁶ When the Israelites saw that they were in trouble, they went to hide in caves and bushes, among the rocks, and in pits and wells.⁷ Some Hebrews even went across the Jordan River to the land of Gad and Gilead.

But Saul stayed at Gilgal, and all the men in his army were shaking with fear.⁸ Saul waited seven days, because Samuel had said he would meet him then. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the soldiers began to leave.

⁹ So Saul said, “Bring me the whole burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” Then Saul offered the whole burnt offering. ¹⁰ Just as he finished, Samuel arrived, and Saul went to greet him.

¹¹ Samuel asked, “What have you done?”

Saul answered, “I saw the soldiers leaving me, and you were not here when you said you would be. The Philistines were gathering at Micmash. ¹² Then I thought, ‘The Philistines will come against me at Gilgal, and I haven’t asked for the Lord’s approval.’ So I forced myself to offer the whole burnt offering.”

¹³ Samuel said, “You acted foolishly! You haven’t obeyed the command of theLord your God. If you had obeyed him, the Lord would have made your kingdom continue in Israel always, ¹⁴ but now your kingdom will not continue. The Lord has looked for the kind of man he wants. He has appointed him to rule his people, because you haven’t obeyed his command.”

¹⁵ Then Samuel left Gilgal and went to Gibeah in Benjamin. Saul counted the men who were still with him, and there were about six hundred.

I have read and re-read this passage. First as a soldier and secondly as a follower of Jesus, called to serve under His rule. I admit that I see things in here others may not. I feel they are important enough to share -so we can learn from it. We don’t know who the author of the two books -1 Samuel and 2 Samuel -is. The stories contained are from a lengthy period of Israel’s history. We don’t know when in his reign that Saul chose the 3,ooo men for his army that this story occurs. What we DO know is that Saul made some very grave choices that cost  his soldiers to lose all faith in him…1400 of the 2,000 that were under his command deserted. We also know that Saul had no strategic clue as to how to position his armies. Finally, we know that Saul did not have proper motives. Saul, earlier in the book of 1 Samuel was used by God to affect a resounding victory over the Philistines. At that time, he had an army of 330,000! He now has 10% of that. Know what “King” Saul was doing at that time? He had gone back to farming! Strike One. IF you are chosen to lead, then LEAD! It was NOT Ted Turner or Lee Iaccoca who coined the phrase..it was Thomas Paine! Look below:

The power of those words is still valid today! If God calls you to lead as a servant (yet again, another paradox of the Bible!) -whether as a pastor, a teaching elder or prophet, then DO SO!!! Don’t go hide in caves or under rocks. Don’t sit idly by while those the Lord has given you charge to strengthen and edify go drifting off from lack of care! I don’t teach in a building with 4 walls that some call a church, but I DO take my calling very serious! I will be held in accounts for what I convey to others.  

Okay, back to Saul. He has a paltry army now. Second horrid strategic mistake. He has divided them. Jonathan has 1,000 men with him. Saul, his father, has 2,000. The SON attacks an outpost in Geba. Here is a map, so you can visualize:

Where is Saul? in Michmash. Where is Jonathan? in Gibeah. Jonathan attacks a Philistine outpost north of him and south of his father, in the place called Geba. A pincer move! Great plan and it succeeds!…sort of. The messengers are sent out to spread the news. Who gets credit for the victory? Not Jonathan. Saul sat idly by while his son attacks an outpost and he is given the credit. Why? because he is the king!  Strike Two! When the Philistine response is an overwhelmingly large army massed for attack. Where is  Saul ? Why, he is still in Gilgal and calls for the army to assemble there with him – about a 14 mile RETREAT! A King….who is in the wrong place to face an enemy. Strike Three!

Enough battle data! Let’s get down to it. What possible benefit is this story to you and I? We face spiritual battles every day if we are truly seeking to be HIS warriors. Evil plans are hatched and enacted around us all the time. If we don’t want to bring shame to the name of Christ, we cannot lose battles. We lose them by not hearing from the Lord. We lose them from doing it all on our own strength. We lose them by being in the wrong place. Time and time again in the Bible there are examples of God trying to get it through our thick heads that we are to rely on Him. 

Battle after battle. Struggle after struggle. Faith crisis after faith crisis. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF the Israelite’s dilemmas and ALL of ours, are HIS to win. How do we win the battle? WE don’t!!! HE DOES. Our job is to be obedient. Allowing God to be Almighty God in all situations WILL bring victory. Finally, Saul lost because he wasn’t patient. Through Samuel, God told Saul to wait for 7 days for Samuel to return. Saul couldn’t do that. He watched his men deserting; the Philistines amassing their battle army and he panicked and had no faith -even though we read just two short chapters earlier about a resounding victory God gave Israel over a vastly superior enemy!! Nope! he had to do it in his strength and again defied God. The consequence for this was horrid! Stay tuned for Part 3, where we get the concept of if we don’t learn from history we are bound to repeat it – with a twist!  May God move mightily in you this day to cleanse you, strengthen you and equip you anew to serve Him better!