God is for us, therefore the enemy’s attack cannot prevail.
Huddled beneath the covers wishing the morning away, I recognized His sweet whisper, “I am for you, not against you. You are my child. You have not been forsaken.” I squeezed my eyes and scrunched up my face because, although I believed what the Lord was speaking to me, my reality felt very different.
I felt alone in many ways.
I definitely felt overwhelmed. Heavy-laden. Crumpling beneath life’s burdens.
But again, He said, “I am for you, not against you.”
Wiping the tears from my eyes, I sat up, rubbed my face, and looked toward heaven. “Lord, will You please speak to me through Your Word this morning? I mean … specifically speak to me and give me strength for this journey You’ve laid out before me?”
My spirit filled with anticipation.
And hope.
A few minutes later I curled up on my favorite spot by the window overlooking the grapevine. Blue joined me on the couch and I stroked his head — tension oozing from my body, my mind, and my spirit. I sipped my coffee, caressing its warmth in my hands, closed my eyes and thought of Jesus.
“Speak to me, Lord. Please speak to me through Your Word.”
Setting my coffee down, I lifted my Bible from the side table and promptly allowed it to flop open. I suppose we’re all guilty of that shortcut or … maybe we should call it passive-aggressive pouting. But, thank goodness, our God is longsuffering and meets us where we are, hears our cries for help, and gives us exactly what we need.
The pages of my beloved, worn Bible fell open to Nehemiah 4 which has a subtitle, “The Wall Defended Against Enemies”.
The wall Nehemiah rebuilt to protect God’s people against the enemy’s attacks.
“[The enemies of God’s people] heard that the walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the gaps [the broken places] were beginning to be closed; then they became very angry, and all of them conspired together to come and attack Jerusalem and create confusion.
Nevertheless we made our prayer to our God, and because of them we set a watch against them day and night.” ~ Nehemiah 4:7-9
Nevertheless.
Nevertheless God’s people countered the enemy’s attack with prayer and by setting guard against his tactics around the clock.
Isn’t this exactly what we are instructed to do when the battles become relentless? The last thing the enemy wants is for us to rebuild our walls, restore the broken places, and repair our altars to an awesome, holy God!
Our God is a God of peace.
When Satan sees that progress is being made and we survived the fire without being burned, and we passed through deep waters without drowning, we can be sure of the enemy’s attack.
He will come in to work anxiety, fear, doubts, and confusion into our hearts and minds.
Our God is not a god of confusion, but a God of peace. He is our mighty God. Our Refuge. Our Victor. He is the Restorer of our broken places.
He is our Strength and our Song.
And as we remain faithful, listening for His instructions, determining to walk according to His will even when it requires sacrifice — especially when it requires sacrifice — He is honored and His grace will be upon us.
His abiding presence will carry us through to the other side of any difficulty Satan throws our way.
Because He is for us, not against us … just as He promised.
I closed my Bible and lifted my hands in praise — praise to the One who is faithful.
Praise to the One who loves us with an everlasting love.
Selah
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Thank you so much for stopping by. I would love for you to share what’s on your heart in the comments below. Scroll a little farther down and you’ll see where you can leave your comments. Together, we can find the nearness of God in our darkest moments.
Sweet blessings to you,
Nan, you don’t know how much I needed this. Since last week, it’s been rough and I’ve cried more tears than I have in a while. Thank you for such sweet words and for reminding me what has to be done in order to fight the battle. Love you!
Bless your sweet heart, Jamie girl. I actually just emailed you before I came over to my website. I’m so sorry you’re in a difficult place that hurts your heart. I think the key word in this message is “nevertheless”. Nevertheless, no matter what was coming their way, the children of God set their eyes on the Lord. They prayed and set a watch against the work of the enemy so they would not be caught off guard. Watch and pray, Jamie. And praise Him in the storm. Love you too!
I love the way you write. I love your dependence on the Lord. Some days, I come under such intense attack, and I run to my sister or a friend to pray for me, when God is right there waiting to hold me and remind me of His Goodness and His readiness to be my refuge in the storm. I told someone today that I had wanted to be a published author again, and yet my greater desire is that my brother Kenny and some friends that I love would know Jesus. I shared Christ with my brother, and he hasn’t responded. It’s been almost two months.i shared with a girl yesterday that is a Jehovah’s Witness how great God was. But I recognized today. All I can do is pray and pray and pray some more and believe God for what only He can do. It’s so hard when you want someone to know Jesus, and they don’t. I friended two Jehovah’s Witnesses the other day on Facebook. I argued with God, not understanding. But He wins every time. Later, I shared my testimony. I had no idea I would ever be brave enough to share my testimony. But God gets all the credit. I’m a born scaredy cat. Thank you for your encouraging blogs. They bless me and God has used them many a time to help me continue on. Much love to you, Nan ❤️
Pam, thank you for your kind words. They encourage me to keep my hand to the plow. If I’ve learned anything, it’s that God’s timing is perfect, especially when things don’t make sense. We are called to plant seeds for the Kingdom. God is responsible for the time of harvest, not us. When we think God’s not doing anything, that’s when He is usually doing the most. When a farmer plants his seeds, he buries it deep within the earth and then he waits. Life is happening in the dark, beneath the soil, but the farmer can’t see it, nor can he affect the timing of when the seed will sprout and come into the light. That is an appointed time that only God can direct. Once I learned this principle, it took a lot of pressure off me to achieve and conquer. Those things are not up to me. My responsibility as I yield to a sovereign God is to obey Him with each step I take and trust Him as I wait. Always remember this: Be still — cease striving — and remember that He is God. Much love to you, too.
Thank you for this reminder sweet friend. I think this is one of my favorites of yours. I love those verses too. Very honest and real. May God bring you His abiding peace today. <3
awww … thank you Marcie girl. This is one of those that Jesus wrote for me, through me, and ministered to me as well. I’m thankful it ministered to you. I can sense His abiding peace today. Thank you for praying 🙂