By Grace

Read: Exodus 39:1-40:38, Mark 1:1-28, Psalm 35:1-16, Proverbs 9:11-12

O Lord, oppose those who oppose me. Fight those who fight against me…
Then I will rejoice in the Lord. I will be glad because he rescues me.
Psalm 31:1,9

Relate: In life, you will face people who desire to bring you down and crush you; whether it be your self-esteem, your opinions, or your faith. You might have differing responses to these adversaries as others, but often it is a battle we feel we must face on our own and just “deal with it.” We refuse to seek help from anyone and everyone, even those closest to us, maybe from fear or the feeling of helplessness, or maybe thinking we are strong enough to face it by ourselves. We might think “What will asking someone for help solve?” And when we try to fight the battle on our own, we fail. Maybe you think you’ve won in the earthly sense but the truth is that without God, there is no victory against evil. 

I also have times where I keep problems to myself and refuse to open up to anyone. Scared of what they would think of me or of the consequences I could face for putting myself in that vulnerable position. I forget that I have free access to the living God who will always listen to me. And when I don’t go to God, I have a lingering feeling of unrest and my mind is consumed with the problem, unable to let go. When we try to fight our adversaries ourselves, we go down a downward spiral and instead, end up feeling worse and inwardly defeated.

React:
In Psalm 35, David is calling on God to “Contend O Lord, with those who contend with me.” (ESV) There are people who wish to destroy him. Instead of trying to deal with them on his own and fight back, he cries out to the Lord and asks him to fight his contenders. He knows that through faith in God, there is victory and trusts with his whole being that God will hear his cry and bring justice to those who fight him. He has full confidence in the Lord and praises Him saying, “My soul will rejoice in the Lord, exalting in His salvation.” He knows that his battles and adversities are in God’s hands and that He will fight for him. We need not keep our burdens to ourselves but call on the Lord as David did and live in confidence that God will win the fight for us. Praise the Lord who will fight your battles and rejoice in His salvation!

Respond:

Dear Lord,
I pray I will not continue to keep my burdens to myself and attempt to face my contenders, thinking I can fight them on my own. Give me strength to cast my pride and fear away and surrender my problems to You. Thank you for Your everlasting kindness and faithfulness and I pray that I will live in confidence of Your victory in the battles You fight for me.
Amen.

Nearly all posts in February and March have as special guest authors the Juniors from the Christian Living class at Faith Academy.