Are You Prepared For the Attack?

 The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?” Psalm 17:1 (NIV)

     For two weeks the Lord had been preparing me for the missile attack. Scriptures leaped out at me every time I sat in prayer.  At first, I thought they were needed for someone who was being attacked; however it didn’t occur to me that I was the target. Why? Because my life was going smoothly. I had absolutely no idea what was coming.

  One day my Bible fell open to Isaiah 41:10 “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” I thought of a friend who was going through a struggle with a loss and sent the Scripture with a note of encouragement to her.

    On another day I read “Psalm 17:1 “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?” and emailed it to a teacher who was struggling daily with a group of students who had no desire to learn but every desire to disrupt her class and intimidate their peers. 

   A few days later, my devotion was from II Chronicles 20:15 “. . . This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.’” Suddenly it occurred to me that my Father was preparing ME for something in which I was going to have to totally and completely rely on Him and trust Him to handle.

   I was right.  The day after  my devotion reminding me that the battle ahead was not mine, but God’s, the missile of slander came out of nowhere and, with deadly precision, hit its mark in the middle of the intended target: me. The comments made were designed to hurt and to cast doubt as to my character but were made anonymously which eliminated any way of correcting what was said or confronting the offender.

   I knelt beside my bed, wounded and hurting at the obvious intent to cast doubt on my witness. “Why, Lord?” I cried. “I’ve tried all these years to do what You would have me do. I haven’t always succeeded but I have tried. Why is this happening?” In the quietness of the morning, the Lord spoke clearly to my heart: “When did I ever tell you that it would be easy . . . following me? Remember what I told you? Your strength is in Me. Do not be afraid. I will do battle for you, just as I have . . . all these years.”

    Have you been attacked today? Perhaps the comments of someone you do not know have reached your ears. Or maybe you have felt the sting from a dear friend who spoke your name in an unkind way. Whatever it may be, rest assured that we have a Father who understands and who encourages us to hold on to Him as He does battle in our place and protects us from  missile attacks. 

   Father, thank you. for being strong for us when we are weak and preparing us for what is to come as you battle in our place. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 R.A.P. it up . . .

Reflect

• What is your immediate reaction when someone says something completely false about you?

• Do you mentally make a “get even” list and store it for future reference?

 Apply

• Memorize one of the Power Verses and repeat it back to yourself when you have been shot at and/or hit with a missile.  

• Share what has happened with a trusted prayer warrior and ask for wise counsel and prayer to determine if any steps need to be taken.

 Power

• Psalm 17:1 (NIV) “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?”

•  Isaiah 41:10 (NIV) “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

•  II Chronicles 20:15 (NIV) “This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.’”