The Battle Belongs To The Lord
BRD REFLECTIONS:
(Felix Yeo, Director of Administration)
READ:
I read both passages and the verse that stood out for me was Psalm 28 verse 7 (NRSV).
“The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts; so I am helped, and my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him”.
OBSERVE:
David cries out to the LORD during a time of distress, urgently calling on God to respond and not remain silent. He petitions God to save him from the consequences of wickedness and to act justly by repaying the wicked accordingly. He trusts that the LORD will take the battle to them. Similarly, in the book of Daniel, we read that it is the LORD’s angels who do battle in the heavenly places. Both were men of faith who trusted in a just God to defend and protect the innocent, the good, and the righteous. Their role was to do God’s will, to follow His commands, and to let God fight the battles for them.
APPLY:
Oftentimes, I find myself wanting to fight against what I perceive to be evil and wrong. I want to respond to being unjustly treated, to hit back at the perpetrators of my hurt and pain. To be angry as they are angry, to be curt or rude as they are curt or rude, to undermine even as they undermine, to fight fire with fire, an eye for an eye. But I am reminded in scripture that I ought instead to fight evil with good, to turn the other cheek, to bless those who curse or persecute me, and to love my enemies. This is indeed a hard call. I struggle, but I am reminded that this is how our LORD responded when He faced persecution, suffering, and hurt, overcoming evil with good.
As much as I wish the same evil on my enemies, as David did, like him, I must trust and leave it to the LORD, knowing that I can rely on Him to protect me, keeping me safe behind His shield and in His strength.
DO:
In many instances, I have experienced God working in me as well as in those who were against me to fulfil His work and purposes. I have realized that it is better, in any situation, to respond with grace and kindness, patience and understanding, and truth in love, costly as it may be. Remembering that it is by the goodness of God and by loving one another, one good deed at a time, that I can change the people and community that God has placed me in.
To remember: “For the battle is not yours, but God’s.” (2 Chronicles 20:15)
PRAY:
Dear God,
Thank you for hiding me in Your arms and shielding me from evil. You have been good and gracious to me. When troubles rage around me, give me the strength to do what is good and right in Your sight. Keep me in Your peace and faith, knowing that the good You work through me will overcome the evil outside. Teach me to surrender to doing Your will so that You can fight my battles.
In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.
