Isaiah 42:13 The Lord will march out like a mighty man,
like a warrior he will stir up his zeal;
with a shout he will raise the battle cry
and will triumph over his enemies.

This is not an image of God that we visualize very often! It seems somehow primitive to us, uncivilized, but we forget that Jesus made a whip of cords and drove the merchants out of the temple. (John 2:15) We tend to have a very “sanitized” image of God, which leaves us without the fear of Him that the Bible is so insistent is necessary. I am reminded of a video I watched yesterday of the A10 “Warthog” close-support aircraft. It may not seem elegant to some people, but boy, does it get the job done! It’s no wonder that those who don’t want America to triumph want to get rid of it! When we insist on God being all elegance and sweetness and light, we are forgetting our enemy, and that is precisely what he (our enemy) wants us to do. He is making a big stir right now, because he knows his time is short, (Revelation 12:17) but that’s all the more reason for us to be anticipating God’s overwhelming victory. Whether we will see it in these bodies or not is up to Him, but we shouldn’t be anxious about it. Life is indeed a battle, and we are in the middle of it. But we have a Commander who is guaranteed to win, and that should give us peace and joy.

I am as prone as anyone to be down about losing skirmishes, so I’ve got to remember that this is the ultimate war, and the outcome is settled. As the saying goes, I’ve read the back of the Book, and we win! I am not to underestimate direct opponents and so lose skirmishes needlessly. However I am also not to fear any opponent, because the One who is in me is greater that my opponent, regardless. (1 John 4:4) I am not to pick fights needlessly, but I am never to run from them. I have never been fond of conflict, and I’m not even a particularly competitive person, but I am not to miss the victories God has for me by trying to avoid the conflict in the first place. The next couple of weeks look hectic in the extreme, and that is conflict of another kind. I am not to withdraw, but press forward boldly, not in my own strength or wisdom but in that of the One who has called and sent me, knowing that if I am faithfully obedient, His victory will be manifested for His glory.

Father, thank You for this strong encouragement and reminder. I overslept by more than an hour this morning, according to what I had planned, but You knew that I needed the rest. Thank You. I pray that moment by moment today I would rest, relax, and rejoice in You, allowing You to use me to bless all who see or hear me, pointing them to You and manifesting Your victory for your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!