The story of the man by the pool of Bethesda reminds me of the stark reality that life is a fight and we cannot afford to wait till the coast is cleared before we step out. For 38 years he waited for the right time and it never came! John 5: 1-8.
Life is a fight. Life is a constant fight. Sometimes, it is a fight to get up each morning and make the day count. It is a fight to keep our families safe. It is a fight to pray, a fight to keep our job, a fight to be significant, a fight against sickness, a fight to bring the prodigal son back home, a fight against cancer, a fight to be relevant, a fight to live and a fight to thrive!
Are you surprised? Don’t be. Even God said, many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivered him out of them all. Psalm 34: 19.
True act of worship is worship in war But in the heat of our battles, God wants us to worship him! He commands worship in war.
Isaiah saw the Lord on his throne the same year tragedy struck Judah- the death of a King. Isaiah 6: 1. God wants us to be overwhelmed by his majesty and not by our battles.
Worship according to the dictionary means giving something its worth. When you worship, you give God his worth. You place him where he belongs, above your problems, above the raging storms, above your doctor’s report. It is easy to be put our focus on the battle ahead of us and lose focus on God, it is easy to be overwhelmed by our problems in life and underwhelmed by our God.
But God doesn’t want us to wait for the coast to clear before we step out. He doesn’t want us to put him on the throne only when we have victory. He wants us to worship him in our battles.
Stories of People who Worshiped in War.
The choir that led an army. 2 chronicles 20: 1-24 Jehoshaphat’s choir led an army to battle. Despite the enemy’s threat, they worshiped in war. Your worship is your Warship! When you worship in battle, the enemy is confused. He will do all he can to make sure you don’t show up in battle with your spiritual Armada (warship), he will write you threat letters, you must remember that the enemy is a toothless barking dog. So don’t take the bait, show up at the front line in worship.
The prisoners that broke jail. Act 16: 25-26. Paul and Silas praised God in the prison. Prayer moves the hand of God, but worship moves God on his throne. David is the man after God’s heart because he touches God’s heart through praises (psalms). When you move a man’s heart, you move the man. When you touch God’s heart, you move God on his throne, the balance of the earth (his footstool) is shaken, chains are broken, and prison doors are opened. Are you shackled or caged, it is no time to cower or panic, it is time to worship and praise him.
The man who lost it all but still trusts God. Job 13:15. Faith brings us to God, but trust gives us rest in him. The enemy tests our ability to worship when all is not well. Satan alleged Job only worships because all is well with him. But Job’s answer was clear, “even though he slays me, yet I will trust in him”. To trust God in spite of the many things that are not right in your life is an act of worship in war. To trust that your life is safe in his hands even in the valley of the shadow of death is to worship God in war.
The prophet who sang even when the music failed. Habakkuk 3:17 It is easy to lift our hands in praise when the music is flowing, of course, what is worship without the music. But a true act of worship begins when the music fails. Habakkuk talks about singing when there is no reason to sing, dancing when there is no rhythm to dance to, and praising when there is no fruit on your fig tree. You know, that is what confuses the enemy!
Life is a fight but things don’t just happen, God knows about everything and nothing happens without his knowledge.
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