Psalms 9:9-10 (NKJV)
9 The Lord also will be a refuge for the
oppressed,
A refuge in times of trouble.
10 And those who know Your name will put their trust in You;
For You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You.
A refuge in times of trouble.
10 And those who know Your name will put their trust in You;
For You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You.
Do you feel like your life is pressing down on you? Do you
sometimes feel like you're trapped, or stuck? Maybe you feel like you're
spinning your wheels, getting nowhere fast!
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| Photo by Geoffrey Hicks www.cubedproject.com |
Pushed in one direction.
Pushed in another. He wants this,
she wants that. Do this, don’t do
that. Some days I feel like everyone has
something to say about the details of my life.
Everyone with an opinion to voice, an argumentative debate to engage in
with me, or simply trying to dictate how the ONLY 24 hours of my day should be
spent! The pushing and pulling of many
hands causes frustration and confusion at times. I can become easily overwhelmed and begin to
lash out at the people closest to me, the ones who are trying to help but sometimes only
make things worse.
However, our natural reaction
when cornered is “fight or flight” and digging in definitely falls under the
“fight” category! At that moment, I have
braced for the fight. I have anchored
myself to stand against the barrage of people and their opinions like a football player, a defensive lineman, who is bracing or positioning for impact!
In searching for direction from the Bible, I found a man of
God who stood his ground, despite 400 other voices telling him what he should
do or say. His name was Micaiah (Mick-Ī-ăh) and his
story is found in 1 Kings 22. The king
of Israel, Ahab, and the king of Judah, Jehoshaphat, was deciding whether they
should go to war over land they thought
they had rights to. They called their
400 “prophets” and asked them if they had the ‘okay’ from God to go into
battle. Ahab was good with that but
Jehoshaphat knew that he should stop and ask the man who actually heard from God and was not easily swayed. In comes Micaiah! When the messengers went to get him, they
tried to persuade him to give the kings what their “itching ears” wanted to
hear. (2 Tim. 4:3-4) They told him what
the other prophets said and Micaiah’s response was “…whatever the Lord says to
me, that I will speak.” (1 Kings 22:14
NKJV) He was not swayed one way
or another but stood on God’s side! He
reserved the right to do only what
God said to do whether it agreed with the others or not. When he got to the kings, God’s message to
Micaiah did not agree with the false prophets (imagine that) and Micaiah spoke
God’s words! Of course it all came to
pass as God said it would because God had a purpose for it all.
Micaiah’s story rings very familiar. When all the influences around you are
pushing and pulling at every angle (go here, do this, say that, believe this
way, start this project, pursue this career, go to this school, be friends with
her, don’t be friends with him, join this group or that) I can be confident and
stand firm. Like Moses before they
crossed the Red Sea on dry land (Exodus 14:13) I can “stand firm” and follow
God’s instructions. Like the same
Jehoshaphat, who later listened to God in 2 Chronicles 20:17, did not have to
fight the battle but simply “stood firm” to let God fight for him! Or, as we are instructed to do in Ephesians 6
after we have put on the full armor of God, to be able to withstand the schemes
and snares of the enemy, we must stand!
For those of you who are, like me, standing with my heels
dug in, bracing for what is to come, know that you are in great company
throughout the Bible of great people who have simply stood firm. Just remember, as you do stand, to continue to
seek God first, His kingdom and righteousness (Matthew 6:33), and remember that the steps of a
good man/woman are “ordered by God” (Psalms 37:23).
I challenge you to
dig in and stand firm. Seek God in
everything and allow Him do direct any steps you may take! You don’t have to listen to every voice that
speaks to you because in the end, there is only one voice that matters. His!
God bless you as you continue to seek Him and His righteousness! I am praying for you!
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