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God Directs and God Expects
Based on “Spiritual Warfare Happens” by Pastor Mark Balmer; 11/15-16/08
Message #2465; Daily Devotional #2 - “God Directs and God Expects”
Preparing the Soil (Introduction): One man raised his hands to Heaven and a whole Army was defeated (Exodus 17:11-13). Moses was this man. What an awesome show of God’s power and protection! When Moses raised his hands toward Heaven he was literally reaching out to God to deliver His people. Moses remembered the many miraculous acts of kindness, mercy, and power that the Lord had already done on behalf of His people. So Moses again trusted God to defeat the forces of Amalek that came against Joshua and his men. Moses raised his hands toward Heaven, showing dependence on God’s divine intervention. When his arms became heavy, and he could no longer raise his hands alone, other men came alongside him and held up his hands for him. All those with Moses saw that when he lowered his hands, the Israelites began losing the battle, but when his hands went back up, they were winning. Therefore, his hands had to remain heaven-bound.
Planting and Watering the Seed (Growth): One evening as my daughter and I walked outside, my eye caught something moving. With the full moon above it was easy to see a mother raccoon with her baby. They were investigating the squirrel’s food bowl which was on the ground under a large oak tree. My daughter, an animal lover like her mother, ran back in the house and came out with some food. By this time, the mother and her baby were out in the middle of the road and traveling on. My daughter shook the bag of food, and the baby raccoon immediately started back to the tree. The swift arm of the mother stopped the baby in its tracks. The baby, still not getting the message, struggled free, but the mother’s whole body stopped it this time. Baby raccoon got the message and stopped struggling. We watched as they both started on down the road. The mother’s experience and wisdom was activated to protect her young. God’s Word, to me, is like that mother raccoon. If I will stay in the Word, I will find God’s protection and leading. Though I may struggle until I understand what God is revealing to me, I will learn that God’s plan is always for my good. While God doesn’t wrestle us to the ground like the mother raccoon did to her offspring, His Word often does. God is more aware than we could ever be of the dangers that await us when we refuse to learn to obey. Being a Christ follower opens us up to attack from the enemy. We are in spiritual warfare every day of our lives. The one who teaches us how to do battle is our Heavenly Father, and it is by His Holy Spirit that we overcome the evil one (1 John: 2:12-14). I am entranced with the wonder of God’s power to deliver His own; not just His power, but His willingness to show us how to trust His leading (Psalm 32:8). God directs, and God expects. I have learned that when God gives divine guidance He does it fully expecting that we will obey Him. God defeated a whole army after which Moses declared Him his protective banner (Exodus 17:15). And not only did God see that the enemy was defeated at that place, but He let us know that the enemy would always be defeated. Then the LORD said to Moses, "Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven." (Exodus 17:14) God was telling Joshua (and us) that He would be at war with the enemy until the enemy is no more.
Harvesting the Crop (Action/Response): That mother raccoon was doing her best to protect her baby from the (supposed) enemy. God, whose love for us is perfect, has given us all we need to do battle, and He tells us: Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. (1Timothy 6:12). Each day there will be onslaughts of evil coming our way if we are living dangerously and following Christ. They will come from the ways of the world, from our flesh, and from Satan’s evil schemes. We must be aware of our surroundings and not be caught off guard. We must be willing to stay before the Lord until we hear His voice or receive His direction. The enemy is out there, but we must always remember our spiritual weapons: God’s Word, the Holy Spirit, and prayer. For we know that God is with the Christ follower, and the victory for the Christ follower is sure. “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To Him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.” (1 Peter 5:8-11)
Cultivate (Additional Reading): Psalm 118; Psalm 119:11
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Calvary Chapel of Melbourne; 2955 Minton Road; W. Melbourne, FL 32904; 321-952-9673
All Bible references are from the New International Version (NIV) unless otherwise noted.
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