When Israel was threatened by the mighty forces of Amalek at Rephidim, God gave them a supernatural victory. Realising that God was fighting the battle for them, Moses built an altar to Jehovah-Nissi: The Lord my banner. God said to them: ‘The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still’ (Exodus 14:14 NIV). And when Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, was facing a great battle, he was told: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.’ We can often get discouraged and feel defeated in the spiritual battles we have to face, but that’s because we’re trying to fight them in our own strength. The only sort of spiritual conflict that’s ever successfully won, is the one God fights for us. He doesn’t expect us to win the battle, only to surrender to Him and let Him win it for us. This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do anything. We’re called to ‘fight the good fight of the faith’ (1 Timothy 6:12 NIV). But God doesn’t ask us to try and do everything on our own, He wants to fight for us. So when we’re worn out from the battle, tired from trying to do everything in our own strength, and feeling like we’re at the end of our rope, we may actually be in just the place God wants us to be. Not because He wants us to be struggling, but because He wants us to realise that we can’t do it all. He wants us to turn to Him, let Him be our strength and remember that the battle is not ours, it’s His. 

What Now?

What are you trying to do in your own strength at the moment? Take a break from it, write out Exodus 14:14 and then spend some time sitting quietly reflecting on the verse.