By Toni Ford
Have you ever been in a battle with a situation in life and felt yourself getting tired, weak and weary?
Lately, I’ve felt that way with a particular situation in my own life, and although I do see an end in sight, I also know that I need an extra boost to remain strong and keep going. I love the Book of Deuteronomy, which is my favorite book in the Tanakh, or Old Testament.
Deuteronomy is filled with God’s promises to the children of Israel, promises that remain the same for us today in this generation and the generations after us.
While reading this past week in chapter seven of Deuteronomy, I reminded of the Lord’s faithfulness to me and to each of us when we are either facing a battle or in the middle of a battle and need strength to continue. The Lord has a strategy unlike our own, and we must be reminded that His way of doing battle are far better than ours. His promises during times of battle include the following:
God will use His power. A battle is not won by our power or ability but only won by God’s power alone. Verse 19 says, “The Lord your God will use the same power against all the people you fear.” The same power God used to help the Israelites conquer the nations as they entered the Promised Land is available to us today. Knowing this gives me great peace and rest from striving to do things on my own.
God will send terror. I love verse 20, which says, “And then the Lord your God will send terror to drive out the few survivors still hiding from you.” The Lord sends terror to the enemy’s camp and gets rid of those persons trying to hide in the background. We may never know the other attacks that are about to come against us, but the Lord does, and He fights on our behalf to get rid of the ones hiding.
God brings confusion. Not only does God send terror but also brings confusion to the plans of those fighting against us. Verse 23 reads, “But the Lord your God will hand them over to you. He will throw them into complete confusion until they are destroyed.”
God will give me the kings. It did no good to conquer a nation without also capturing its king. Once the king was captured, the whole nation was defeated. The Lord does not only want to give us victory in parts of our battle; He wants to give us complete and total victory over our enemies. Verse 24 says, “He will put their kings in your power, and you will erase their names from the face of the earth.”
Lord, today we thank you that we can trust in You to fight our battles. We now pray for strength and ask you to fight on our behalf and remind us that we can never win a battle on our own. Thank you for your faithfulness and that your promises to us never get old or out of date!
If you would like continued prayer, feel free to email me at tonif77@gmail.com. I would love to pray for you!
