So in an earlier blog post I wrote about my battle with fear and how God finally lifted that burden from me. Throughout that entire struggle, I was reading through Deuteronomy, and there was this constant theme of not fearing and instead trusting in God's proven faithfulness. This morning I was encouraged as I realized that God is again meeting me where I am every moment in this struggle... through every 'theme' I'm facing, He's providing truths and beautiful reminders in my life to meet me in that place. The past few days I've been feeling like I have no fight left in me. I'm so emotionally and mentally drained, and I've reached a desperation of hopelessness and helplessness to do anything about it. And so I read in Joshua this morning, since I've finished Deuteronomy. Israel started entering the land God promised them and called them to go in and take. As they fought nation after nation, God gave those nations into their hands like it was nothing... and, dude, this is so cool...: "Joshua captured all these kings and their lands at one time, because the LORD, the God of Israel, fought for Israel" (Joshua 10:42). Again and again this morning, I read that same line throughout Joshua... God stopped the sun in the middle of the sky for an entire day, "for the LORD fought for Israel...." "the LORD confounded them before Israel..." "the LORD threw large stones from heaven on them..." "the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the sons of Israel..." "The LORD gave it also with its king into the hands of Israel..." And finally, tons of these kings/nations/armies decided to collaborate to defeat Israel together, because they saw everyone falling before them. Joshua 11:4 says, "They came out, they and all their armies with them, as many people as the sand that is on the seashore, with very many horses and chariots. So all of these kings having agreed to meet, came and encamped together at the waters of Merom, to fight against Israel." The power of God and His people was reaching everywhere, so all of these forces decided to unite to end this thing... as many people as the sand on the seashore! "Then the LORD said to Joshua, 'Do not be afraid because of them, for tomorrow at this time I will deliver all of them slain before Israel..." (Joshua 11:6). It goes on to tell of Joshua and Israel defeating every single one of them... and then, one other thing caught my attention... "For it was of the LORD to harden their hearts, to meet Israel in battle in order that he might utterly destroy them, that they might receive no mercy, but that he might destroy them, just as the LORD had commanded Moses" (Joshua 11:20). It struck me that God didn't just protect Israel from these nations that decided to come attack them. God actually hardened these nations hearts to cause them to go against Israel in battle, in order that He could defeat them and give Israel the land He had promised them and called them to go in and take! Let that one sink in.......
God hardened nations' hearts so that they would attack His people. If you stop there, that sounds pretty bad. But that isn't where it ends! God then fought for His people to bring them into a place of freedom--a place that He had set apart for His people. The God of Israel fought and won every one of those battles... and that is the same God that I serve... the same God that is fighting for me today and has been fighting for me every second of this battle I have been facing. Who am I to resent this battle when my God may have even caused the enemy to come up against me so that He could fight for me and accomplish His purposes--beautiful purposes that I can't even begin to comprehend without seeing the picture God sees?
My merciful, faithful, loving God reminded me this morning that He is fighting for me. He knows I have no strength left inside of me, and He is powerfully meeting every enemy and battle that comes to meet me. My God is so good...
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