Rest is a weapon
Rest is a weapon
I believe that this blog is, in a sense, the bringing together of the last 3, that is, stillness, presence and faith. I have given it the title REST IS A WEAPON because in my experience, our enemy, the devil, wants nothing more than for us to be stressed, too busy, anxious, fearful and overwhelmed. When we are in that kind of state, we have taken our eyes off Jesus - you could say that the situation has become bigger to us, than HE IS!
However, whenwe are resting in God, and by, that I mean, taking intentional time to still ourselves, as discussed in the first blog of the series, whenwe are leaning into the presence of God, and by that, I mean His nature, and finally, whenwe choose Biblical truth overand above our feelings, and overlies, overwhat circumstances seem to be saying, THEN we are strong, THENwe are less vulnerable, THENwe are alert and thereforefar less likely to be taken out by the devil’s tactics.
Resting in WHO God says I am, resting in WHO I know Him to be - these aremy weapons. The devil can do nothing with a believer who continues to stand in the face of loss and crisis, he is powerless against a Christian who time and time again chooses to believe truth and God’s Word, even when life seems to be falling apart. Our enemy can only wreak havoc, and rob us of peace when we choose to leave the sanctuary of God’s presence. King David, describes God in many of the psalms as his high tower, his hiding place, his refuge, his stronghold, his shield.
Psalm 3 says this “how many are my foes, many are rising against me, but you oh Lord are a shield about me....I lay down and slept for the Lord sustained me, I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me”.
The battles in the OT were all about land; about taking possession of the land that God had promised the Israelites. Our battles, of course, are notfought with the physical weapons of warfare, against a flesh and blood enemy - we know this - our battle is primarily a spiritual battle, and our weapons as described in Ephesians chapter 6, are faith, the Word of God, standing tall and steadfast on the truth that in God’s sight we are righteous, we are saved and covered and protected by the blood of Jesus.
Psalm 37 v 7 David says this ...”be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him, refrain from anger, fret not yourself, it tends only to evil,..... those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land”.
The devil’s main tactics, I believe, are twofold. His desire is that we should doubt God’s goodness and secondly, that we doubt how veryloved we are. If he can do both, or either of these in our lives, he has scored a little victory. In the end, it’s all about our response, and I want to end with this really important question “how do we, how will we respond to the cancer diagnosis, the empty bank account, the wayward child, the broken relationship? Will we surrender our peace, our rest, our land, to the devil’s lies and allow him to trample the fruit of our vineyards, or will we hide ourselves in the high tower of God’s presence and rest in the truth that God is always good and that we are forever loved? Will we be tossed this way and that, by emotions and circumstances or will rest be our weapon, as we choose to stand strong and steady, on the truth?”