The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.  Exodus 14:14

God knows exactly where you and I are, and He alone knows what we are facing at this very moment.  He not only knows, He understands our precise struggles and the battles that we are in.

We need not fret or be fearful when life hands us adversities, these are the very moments, that we must remember that nothing is beyond the scope of God's absolute care for us.. His children. We can be sure that God will take care of everything we need, His love and kindness well exceeds anything that we can imagine.

And, because God will fight our battles, means we do not have to wonder or  worry, we do not have to be anxious or discouraged when bad things happen in our lives.  When life seems hopeless, when a situation is overwhelming or when a matter at hand is mind-boggling, we may be tempted to doubt God.  Still, He has promised to take care of us (Philippians 4:19) and to love us beyond measure. (Romans 8:37–39)

Remember when Moses told the children of Israel, "The Lord will fight for you; and ye shall hold your peace." (Exodus 14:14)  It was at the very moment that they were standing at the edge of the Red Sea, fenced in by the waters before them and the army of Egyptians behind. 

It looked like an impossible situation... to the Israelites... but not to God!

God was making a point, He wanted to make it crystal clear to Egypt that He is Lord (Exodus 14:4) and to teach Israel that He alone was their Deliverer (Exodus 6:6).  They were neither able or capable of escaping the situation they were in... they needed God to intervene and move on their behalf.

The battle appeared to be between the Egyptians and the Israelites, but in reality... it was between the Egyptians and God. (Exodus 14:4) When we learn to trust God to fight the battles we face, we will be able to sidestep our fears and anxieties. 

If you are at a place in life, where you can see absolutely no way around your problem... when you are standing at the edge of the waters and can't turn back, trust God!!  He will be your way out, He alone will roll back the waters and provide an escape!

There is no battle too fierce or daunting, that God can't handle.  Don’t be afraid, don’t waver, stand firm in God's Word.  Then march out boldly, knowing God is with you, (Joshua 1:5) it is so much easier than just sitting in the seat of fear and worry! 

Will you trust God completely today?

And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? Genesis 3:8,9

Ever since the fall of Adam and Eve there has been a void that left man with a gaping, senseless emptiness in life.  The heart of man still hungers as he seeks for that which would meet his needs and fulfill his desires.  

Man no longer knows the intimacy of walking with God in a sinless world, his days are filled with conflict and struggles.  He destroys himself with the very things that are supposed to bring him peace and happiness, meaningless things such as alcohol, drugs, sex...etc.  His garden of life has become full and tangled with weeds.

And, when those things fail to satisfy him, his passions turn to lust and his appetite converts to perversions.  These changes are seen lightly in the world today as "Progressive Thinking!"
  
It is no wonder that as "man and his world progresses," evil becomes the preferred and sophisticated!!  ALL intimacy with God is lost!!  That sweet communion that Adam and Eve shared in the garden with God is long gone. 

WE can not say we have not been warned by God's Word. Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!  Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink: Which justify the wicked for reward and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!!  Isaiah 5:20-23

This world and those who do not know Jesus Christ as their personal and very own savior are doomed!  Those  of you who hold such a high opinion of yourself, all your good at is drinking, and lining your pockets with bribes from the guilty, while you violate the rights of the innocent!

You won't get away with it though, as fire eats stubble and dry grass goes up in smoke, your souls will atrophy and your so called achievements will crumble into the dust.  

There is a God! He longs for you to turn from your wicked ways and seek Him alone.  We can have that sweet fellowship when we pursue a relationship with the Lord!  

All the lust... all the evil... all the perversions can be pushed back into the darkness, when we have a relationship with Christ Jesus!!  Do you know why??? Because, "JESUS is the LIGHT OF THE WORLD!!"

We have this promise from the God's Word: Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." John 8:12  

When we become the children of the Lord, there is no need to stumble around in the darkness wondering what the world is doing!  Jesus is the light that provides plenty of light and life for each of us to enjoy and live in.  And, once again He will commune daily with us... in the garden of our hearts!

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
2 Chronicles 7:14

Let's face it, "Our nation needs God's healing hand upon it and it greatly needs the people of God to make the first move!! It needs Christians and Churches who are willing... to humbly turn back to Him, to pray and to seek His Holy face!  Only then will the Lord forgive us of our sins and begin to heal this land!"

Within my heart there is an outcry for this nation and I truly believe it is possible for the Mercy of God to touch our land once more.  But. it begins with we who call ourselves Christians!  We are to simply and humbly turn to God once more, repenting, reading the Word, praying, fasting and seeking the only and one true God who is able to heal and to save the lost!

I am aware that the "signs of our times" tell us that soon the Lord Jesus could return for his people.  And, I know that there are those of you who just want to pray; "Lord come quickly," while I too want the Lord to come, I know there is still work to be done!  

There are souls out there, they are lost, they are dying, they are drowning in sin and they need the Lord Jesus Christ!!  Not only that, some of them are family members... mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, others may be good friends!!  

I will go one step further, please don't get upset with me... but there are people who call themselves "Christians" who are just as lost and fooled by the liar of all lies, Satan himself!!  They are not living in Christ Jesus and He is not living in them!!

Still, are we really ready to give up on their souls, are we ready for them to see the real wages of sin??? 

For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Romans 6:23

We must tell the lost that they don't have to listen to the lies of Satan, who is telling them what to do, while he strangulates them in their sin! They can be free to discover the delights of listening to God, they can have whole, healed and lives that are put-together, with more life on the way!!  

Are you working hard at sin, disabled in depression, bound by alcohol, drugs or sex?  Are you willing to stay in your sin and let it rule your entire life?? And, do you know what your reward will be, your pension for your sin is death!!  

You must know, you can have God's gift, true living, real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus Christ, himself!  He paid it all for each of us... we just need to repent and accept Him. 

I believe God is raising up an Army of His people, a remnant, that fraction of people who are willing to "fight for what's right" to "fight the good fight!" 

Fighting to pursue a righteous life - a life of wonder, faith, love, and steadiness.  We must run hard and fast in the faith.  We must seize our eternal life, the life we were called to, the life we so fervently embraced in our salvation!

Are YOU ready to fight the good fight?  This world needs Christian Soldiers who will win the battle, with God's help!!

And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.  2 Corinthians 12:9,10


The word "thorn" speaks volumes on its own, we can relate immediately to thoughts of sufferings, pain, trouble, humiliation and physical ailments. Paul's thorn remains vague and cryptic, so that all of us with a "thorn" may readily relate and hopefully apply the spiritual lessons in this passage of scripture, into our own lives.  

Some say Paul's "thorn" had to do with his eye condition, possibly from the light that shown upon him when he was traveling to Damascus,  I'm not so sure (we will go into that another day), others say Paul's thorn is attributed to the origin of demonic activity permitted by God, still others believe Paul's thorn was given to him to keep him from becoming proud over revelations he had received from God.  

I know one thing for sure, Paul's "thorn" kept him grounded and more dependent on the Lord Jesus Christ and His Grace.  So what is and how can God's Grace work in our lives to help us live with "our own thorns?"  

Our first thoughts of grace may be poised, finesse, beauty and agility. Still, God's Grace is sufficient, it is adequate for the purpose and it is enough for us.  Grace is God's presence, God's favor and God's power.

It is a force, a heavenly strength given to those of us who will call upon God.  This grace will rest on faithful believers who accept their weaknesses, sicknesses and difficulties for the Gospels sake. See Philippians 4:13 

The greater our weakness, the longer our illness and the heavier our burdens for Christ, the more grace God will give to accomplish His will. What God gives us is always sufficient for us to live our daily lives, to work for him and to endure our suffering and our "thorns" in the flesh. 

No test or temptation that comes our way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come through it. 1 Corinthians 10:13

We must learn to look and see the eternal value in our weaknesses, for they cause Christ's power to rest on us and live within us as we walk through life towards our heavenly and eternal home!!

We may have adversity, but what a glorious adventure to walk, live and depend on God through it all!  God meant for us to live and work in partnership with Him, we need never to walk alone or on our own.

And, when we depend totally on God, our viewpoint and attitude changes.  We can sleep peacefully and wake up with joyful expectations, waiting to see what God will do next.  

So, don't ponder or wonder about "why the thorn" is there.  Accept the Grace from God and live victoriously, knowing that "THORN" has caused you to rise above your circumstances!!!  You are alive in Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ is alive in you!  

I pray that God's grace abounds upon you, in your daily walk with Him.

Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him. Job 13:15

Job with sores, boils all over his body, suffered in misery and with no relief for months.  He also bore deep grief for his seven dead sons and three daughters.  He lost all his wealth, while his own wife rebuffed him and his brothers rejected him. Even the little children shunned Job.

At first, it looks like Job was submissive and obedient, when he said, "Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord."  Job 1:21  He accepted his trials and adversities with great resignation and held to his Faith!

However, time has a way... of wearing us down, just as it did Job. Over the months Job's faith was shaken and his confidence in God wavered. He defended himself and wanted to know the wrongs he had done, the sins he had committed.  He believed God saw him as an enemy and had even turned his back on him. God was holding the sins of his youth against him, or so Job thought.  Job 13:23-26

Job also griped and his pride grumbled, "If only I knew where to find him; if only I could go to his dwelling!  I would state my case before him and my mouth with arguments.  I would find out what he would answer me, and consider what he would say.  Job 23:3-5

We may all find ourselves like Job at times, FAITH is a bit easier when the trials of life don't last very long.  But, when money is short, and there is no job in sight, when sickness is present day after day into years, and when there seems no end to whatever we are facing... our faith can dwindle and our trust in God may fade. 

It is at this point we must drop our pride and make a choice!  We ought choose to remember God's promises and decide to forget our doubting!  This is the very time we must trust and believe God's Word. We must renounce our fear, doubt and refuse to see the outward appearances.  Our God is at work, right there in the midst of the struggles!  He has promised to always be at our side!

We do better to submit to God, then to question what He is doing! Job did just that! See: Job 42:1–6. 

However, Job's final answers to God were of absolute humility and submission to his revelation.  He confessed that: (1) God does all things well; (2) That everything God permits to occur he does so in wisdom and with purpose; and thus (3) even the suffering of the righteous has meaning and divine purpose.

We have four lessons here as I see it:

1.  Trust is a Must! We must believe with all our heart, soul and mind in the absolute sovereignty of God.  We need to pray that we would truly believe this!

2. Our assurance in God is important at all times!  We need to pray for that, (the song says it best) "Blessed Assurance, Jesus is mine... Oh, what a foretaste of Glory divine!  Heir of salvation, purchase of God, Born of His Spirit, washed in His Blood!" 

3.  Repentance isn't popular, but we need to repent of all the times we have questioned God or found fault with him and in the way we feel we have been treated by him.  We need lose all pride, humble ourselves and pray we would see these murmurings as sinful.

4.  Be Satisfied with God's Holy will and He will see us through!! Pray and believe in your heart that God is working out His best for each of us!

God's Promise to us:  ...for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.  Hebrews 13:5

I know that I know... God will not leave me.  I pray you have that same confidence in Him!