The War of 2010

2 Chronicles 32:7-8
"Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid nor dismayed before the king of Assyria, nor before all the multitude that is with him; for there are more with us than with him. With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God, to help us and to fight our battles." And the people were strengthened by the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.

"Father, thank You for these words. As we go into a new year, sometimes it feels like a war. But these words remind us that You are going to be with us and we don't have to be afraid. Thank You also for this week, and Christmas, Lord, and for time with family and friends. In Jesus' Name, Amen."

Good morning/afternoon/evening!

There's a New Year coming up, and we're going to study some verses to prepare for it. This is the beginning of that series.

Be strong and courageous. God wants us, as we go into something new, to be strong. Strong doesn't mean bench press twice our weight, it means that we don't back down, that we trust in Him.

When I am afraid, I will trust in You. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? says Psalm 56:3-4. David isn't saying he will never be afraid, he's saying that he'll trust in God when he fears. David's a pretty courageous man, I think. I can be afraid of stink bugs, but to be courageous I have to master than fear and do something about it.

Don't be afraid or dismayed before Assyria's king, or before his army, because there are more of us. They have flesh, we have God, to help us and to fight our battles. In the Christian life, as we serve God in this 'war' against the world, it's very easy to just sit back and say 'There's more of them! What's the world coming too?'. Sometimes there are more of them, that is true. But we have little Benedict Arnolds in their ranks. The world thinks they are one of them, but they are actually God's and they are with us and just waiting for the right time to turn, and when they come over in the public eye, they'll probably bring a few others with them.

Also, our message is louder and better than theirs. What do they have? 'Do whatever you want, because life is short. There's no God, we came here from apes, and when you die, you might be reincarnated into a bug'. What do we have? 'Jesus died on the cross because we did do whatever we wanted. Life on earth is short, but after we die, Heaven is for eternity.'. I like ours better. (The message I used for the world was a few different beliefs mixed together).

Hope everybody had a great Christmas.

In His Service,
Joyce