YOU Stand!

Friday, December 16th, 2011

Today's Passage> Joshua chapter 2
Memory Verse> Ephesians 6: 13

Now more than ever before, the need for God, morality or anything of that nature seems to be dissipating along with the ozone layer. With all the adversity that we face from one day to another, it would seem as though the argument for God is on the losing end. The more trials arise, the less people seem to be willing to tolerate a God Who supposedly just sits idly by while the poor continue to get poorer, and oppression from the rich and powerful gets more overwhelming. But now more than ever before, the people of God must be willing to stand for what we believe no matter what.

Case in point: for years, a city in Califonia has always allowed local churches to put up nativity scenes during the Christmas holidays. But not this year. Protests from atheists opened the door to the city granting them permission to make bids on the spots usually held by those churches. The atheists, who had obviously planned this out long before the holidays even got here, were prepared for a fight. They made 11 bids for spots and received 18; the believers, who didn't see this coming and didn't have the time to counteract this highly- organized attack, made 8 bids and only received 2 spots. And what did the atheists do with the spots throughout the city? They put potted plants at all the spots except for 2 specific locations. These two were used to display their ideas of why there is no need for a God. This means they merely wanted the ABSENCE of Christian symbols which had aggravated them for so long. If you don't think the CAMPAIGN for the antiChrist has begun, think again.

In today's passage, God uses a prostitute to show us how taking a stand is done. She knew it was time to stand for the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when the spies showed up. Rather than quake in fear of what the king of Jericho could do to her, she decided it was better to be on the side of THE God Who had shown His power by delivering His people from the tyranny of the Egyptians. Instead of being pre-occupied with what she would LOSE if she protected God's people, she set her gaze on what she was about to gain. Her acts of obedience established the foundation for Israel's takeover of Jericho. What message does that send to us today? It only takes ONE believer to take a stand.

The enemy is very crafty and cunning, slipping in behind the scenes and systematically removing the essence of who we are from our society while he pre-occupies us with the petty aggravations-- financial struggles, what other saints are saying/doing, and anything that will cause us not to have the strength to fight. But that is PRECISELY why we MUST fight. We cannot afford to be unprepared to make INFORMED decisions about our faith. We must be sober and steady, knowing that our fight is really not against flesh and blood-- although the enemy uses people to come against us all the time. All it boils down to is being willing to DO something. Now, I'm sure the churches in that city will be ready next year. But what the enemy has done is gain ground for his kingdom. This thought alone should put us on guard and fill us with the desire to always be at our post, leaving no room for the enemy. All the Lord requires of us is to stand with our WahOLE armor. And the gates of hell will NOT prevail.

Prayer: Father, thank You for the shift in our mindset as believers. I declare total submission to you and Your plan for my life. I stand with the WHOLE armor fixed and in place. Cleanse my heart and forgive all my rebellious acts. I repent and turn from them today so that You can use every part of me for Your glory. In Jesus' Name, Amen.