II Timothy 1:7; Psalm 48 - "Fighting For Me"

The words to "Fighting For Me" are going through my mind this morning. He never stops fighting for us. He never leaves us. He never quits supplying His strength to us. But all of these 'He never's' are dependent upon us. He cannot do or be for someone who turns from Him. He desires to be in relationship with us. Not only that but He desires to be in full or complete relationship with us. That means we need to go beyond salvation into being sanctified. It means we must die to self in order for Him to live fully in and through us. As one lives this type of life, they will experience Him in a new, different way. The 'tough' days will still come about but they will not be accompanied by fear but instead with renewed strength. God took me Psalm 48 this morning to ponder upon. As I read it, I wondered why this Psalm when it is about the church and this song is about me as an individual. Duh, Sheila! I am a part of the church. I am the church. People see me and others who live out a Christ-like life as the church. Our faith in Him is confirmed by the way we live, especially the way we live in 'tough' days. Our hope in Him shines brightly through us when we allow Him to be the King of Kings and Lord of Lords of our life. His love oozes out of us after we allow Him to cleanse us so He can fill us. We do not deserve His love yet He desires to fill us with it so others will receive it. His love, grace, and mercy are available to all who will accept it. But we must go further than just acceptance. We must live it out. Matthew Henry wrote:  

This God, who has now done such great things for us, is unchangeable in his love to us, and his care for us. If he is our God, he will lead and keep us even to the last. He will so guide us, as to set us above the reach of death, so that it shall not do us any real hurt. He will lead us to a life in which there shall be no more death.

We talked in our Wednesday night Bible study about the importance of a firm foundation in Christ. In The Passion Translation Psalm 48:9 it reads:

In God’s city of Angel Armies, in the city our God
Set on firm foundations, firm forever.

Yes! Firm foundations are essential if we want to spend eternity with God. We cannot allow 'tough days' to pull us away from Him. Instead we need to lean into Him. We cannot allow 'tough days' to cause others to not have the desire in their heart to be in relationship with Him. Instead we need to show them the peace that comes through a relationship with Him. I love these words in this song...

When the going gets tough
And my strength's not enough
I see You showing up like never before
This battle for my heart
You took on from the start
You are the peace when my mind's at war

Yes! The enemy sees our 'tough days' as open doors to destroy us. He tries to destroy us with doubts and fears. He uses people's words to try to take us further down. His goal is to take people out of God's love into the depths of hell. That is why it is so important for us to continue to stand upon II Timothy 1:7 in His love and empowerment instead of allowing the enemy to put fear upon us. Our God's love is greater than anything the enemy tries to do. Our God is stronger than the enemy.  He loves us so much that...

You will never stop fighting for me
When I can’t fight for myself
Every word is a promise You keep
'Cause You love me like nobody else
You stand up for me in the darkest night
When my faith is weak You're still by my side
You will never stop fighting for me

Yes! He keeps His word. Last night the miracle Doc and I read before bedtime was about a boy who was healed. God healed people all those years ago and heals today. I have been blessed with healing in my physical body many times. Doc has been physically healed before. We are praying, hoping, and believing he will be healed from the pancreatic cancer. Woo hoo! 

Dear Jesus,
Thank You for the blessings yesterday and the ones ahead in this day! Thank You for loving us so greatly! Thank You for the miracle You are performing in Doc's body with healing him from the pancreatic cancer! Father, take our faith deeper through these 'tough days' so people will see You through us. Lord, in order to do that we know You need to cleanse us so You can fill us. Do this in a mighty way. We desire to be beacons of light for You. Father, today there are many bi-vocational pastors who are working on the sermon You have for them to bring tomorrow. I pray for them to feel Your strength in the process. I pray for them to know You are fighting for them as the enemy tries to stop them. Encourage them to keep going in Your strength. Lord, may all believers go past salvation into sanctification so others will see us, the church, living in Your empowerment. Thank You Jesus for being My King of Kings and Lord of Lords! Amen.