Victorious Living - 06 June

What’s a banner? In military terms, it’s a flag that identifies each unit and allows the troops to find and rally around the carrier/leader. In Exodus 17, Moses held up the staff of God during a battle with the Amalekites. When the staff was held high, Israel won. After the battle, Moses created an altar called Jehovah Nissi, or The Lord My Banner. Run to the banner in difficult times. God is there to see you through your battles.

May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob protect you! May he send you help from the sanctuary and give you support from Zion! May he remember all your offerings and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices! Selah May he grant you your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans! May we shout for joy over your salvation, and in the name of our God set up our banners! May the Lord fulfill all your petitions! Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed; he will answer him from his holy heaven with the saving might of his right hand. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.  Psalm 20:1-7 (ESV)

I frequently use this Psalm to pray for my enemies. It’s easy to pray it for a friend, but as I pray for an enemy, I find that God changes my heart. But it applies to my own victorious walk in Christ as well.

The Lord’s Name is far more powerful than we can imagine. We need to trust – trust – trust in God.

We need to give our problems to Him before we try to fix the problem ourselves. That’s the hard part. We want to feel like we can handle things. We take stuff into our own hands, and that leads to even more trouble. As hard as it is to admit you can’t fix stuff on your own, you need to place the problem in the palm of God’s hand.

My life verse is Exodus 14:14. My personality is one of constant motion. I am the first to try to make my problems go away by myself, but God wants me to do it differently.

The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace. Ex 14:14 (KJV)

I have read and studied God’s Word daily for years. It is a very systematic type of study. I don’t play “Bible roulette” where I just allow the Bible to open to any page and look for an answer there. When I am in trouble, I look at the day’s reading and God always puts something in front of me.

A few years ago, my rental property was foreclosed. I did not find out until the water was turned off. I had ten days to find a new place. I was ready to run like a headless chicken, but I needed to read my Scripture portion before I began my day. Here, in part, was what I read.

My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.  Psalms 63:5-8 (ESV)

Because I am me, I took this passage as a need to sit for the day and just praise God (that “upon my bed” thing was pretty tempting too!). I did nothing for an entire day but praised God. No packing. No Craigslist. No running around. Just praising and praying.

Next day, I looked on Craigslist. The first ad I saw is my current home. Had I run around the day before, I would have missed the blessing of the perfect apartment and the perfect landlord (who is now a friend). I was permitted to begin moving belongings that day, and even though rent wasn’t due until the first of the month, I was allowed to stay for the remainder of the current month. My landlords placed a switch on my hot water heater so I could save money on my electric bill. My dogs were safe. I was less than two blocks from my work. God truly upheld me and found me just the right place as I clung to Him.

Have you been blessed by God when you have stopped and simply given your problem to Him? I would like to hear what happened. Write me an email or put a comment here (you can comment anonymously if you choose). God is good and the more we testify of the things God does for us, the more other people will place faith in God as well. If you received the exact Christmas present you wanted, wouldn’t you tell everybody? God’s  grace and protection is so much better than anything you’d get from a store. Don’t be afraid to tell people what He’s done for you.

I look forward to finishing the week with you on Friday. Email/write!