GOD’s instructions for victory

Dear friends,

it’s so nice to win, isn’t it?

Have you ever wondered why we love it so much?

Could the reason be that it is what HE wanted us to strive for, fight for and wanted it to be our most favorite blessing?
I mean it is just so fascinating that EVERYTHING we love and want and desire is exactly what GOD has promised us and has even died for that we would have it.
Fascinating and demonstrating.
Showing us proof that we are HIS people, made by HIM, designed in HIS image and also according to HIS ideas about us – we are seeking and yearning for love, for a happy marriage, for a family, good health and happiness – at least if we are in our right mind, which is also a desire we all have and a blessing HE gives us – and what a “conincidence”:
these are the blessings GOD promised to HIS people.

Of course it is not a coincidence.

We are HIS creation.

If the devil had made us, we would be happy and deeply fulfilled every time we destroy or kill or violate others.
Whereas he fooled many people into believing that this is what they are supposed to be doing and what makes them happy, ALL of them know deep within themselves that it is NOT THE TRUTH, that they are not on the right path, that they are rebelling, disobeying and that they WILL be punished for this one day.

This is called a conscience and everybody has it, is born with it, it is given to us by birth.

Regardless where we are born and which circumstances we are born into, we have a natural and instinctive knowing about right and wrong and about justice and goodness.

Many people do not act according to it and do their best to unlearn it over the course of their lives, but when you look at children, they know what a lie is and they do feel guilty when they tell a lie – at least until they learn something else, most likely by their role models which would be us, their parents, their relatives, their teachers…

What I am getting at is that victory is important to everybody and GOD has intended us to seek it, to fight for it and to desire it.

BECAUSE it is what we can have when we are HIS.

And only when we are HIS people can we have victory.

Only through HIM.

We cannot win by not following the principles and rules GOD has layed out for us and we cannot win without HIM.

It is simply not possible.

When we try to do it our way and without GOD, our victory will ALWAYS and only be temporary and superficial and when we even fall for the snare of the enemy, who is telling us that the power is within us and that we can do whatever we want, then, we may seem to be victorious and even seem to have won in this life, but we will never be winners for eternity!

The stronger our egos and will and soul is, the harder it can be to win.

Because then, we are prone to believe that we are the doers, the soldiers, the fighters, that through our power the battle is won.

GOD has many examples in HIS WORD to prove this wrong.

I would like to take a look at the story in 2 Chronicles 20 with you to demonstrate what I mean.
This chapter has been very helpful for me to learn about HOW we can attain victory over the enemy.
It contains divine instructions when you analyze it – and last night, at a late night prayer and spiritual warfare meeting with my beloved sisters, all highly skilled and experienced prayer warriors (they all have many more years of praying and fighting and serving THE LORD under their belt than I do!), we looked at this chapter once again together and it was our basis for the breakthroughs we achieved right there and then, the victories of last night for HIS kingdom.

So the situation was that King Jehosaphat was threatened by 2 tribes, the Ammonites and the Moabites, who outnumbered his people greatly and he was afraid and the first thing he did was to seek THE LORD and proclaim a fast throughout all Judah.
Very important and ESSENTIAL first move!
If you want to win the battle, you MUST ask GOD first about it and also, you need to become receptive for what HE is going to tell you and you need to show HIM that you are submitting yourself (and if you are a leader, also your people) into HIS hands and this is an accepted and proven means of doing so, FASTING.

Here is GOD’s promise for those who fast and pray and for success of this endeavour, and that it will work every time!

2 Chronicles 7: 14-15
14If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
15Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attend unto the prayer that is made in this place.

Verse 15 emphasizes that if this is done in a place, a church building for instance, or your home, it also will sanctify the place and will improve the anointing of this place and will make it more likely that GOD will hear other prayers made there as well in the future!

What a promise!

An instruction for success, for victory and for answered prayer!

Priceless!

I really wonder why so many people don’t do this, me personally, I cannot over-emphasize the importance of fasting and what it has brought me spiritually, I would not have had any breakthrough without fasting I suppose, or let me put it that way, when I discovered fasting for MY FATHER, that’s when HE really started to accept me, to communicate with me, to guide me, to heal me, to deliver me and to give me more and more opportunities to serve HIM.

Ok, so far, so good.

So they started out right.

The next thing is what Jehosaphat did next:
He gathered them all together and they sought the face of THE LORD and were asking for a word of knowledge or a word of wisdom or for a prophecy.
That’s exactly what we need to do as well!
Sometimes, GOD will speak to us personally in a matter that only concerns us.
Sometimes when we don’t hear from HIM and/ or when it is a matter for many, for a group, a congregation for instance or in the story of the bible, for a tribe, the tribe of Judah, it takes a gathering, seeking GOD together, fasting together, praying together, crying out to GOD together for help.

Even the sequence and the order of a successful prayer is given in this story!
Wouldn’t you love to have your prayers answered?
There are certain things a prayer needs to contain in order to get GOD’s attention and approval.

Let’s take a look at verses 6-13 of this chapter:

2 Chronicles 20: 6-13:
6And said, O Lord God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven? and rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee?
7Art not thou our God, who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy friend for ever?
8And they dwelt therein, and have built thee a sanctuary therein for thy name, saying,
9If, when evil cometh upon us, as the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we stand before this house, and in thy presence, (for thy name is in this house,) and cry unto thee in our affliction, then thou wilt hear and help.
10And now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and mount Seir, whom thou wouldest not let Israel invade, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them, and destroyed them not;
11Behold, I say, how they reward us, to come to cast us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit.
12O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee.
13And all Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.

So he started with addressing GOD properly, exalting HIM, acknowledging HIS power and might and then reminds HIM of what HE has done in the past and the promises HE made to HIS people. Also, he reminds GOD of what they had done for HIM and how they had walked in HIM and served HIM.
Then he comes to the center of his prayer, the petition and asks that GOD would defend them.
The end of the prayer is also important, because it says everybody, the entire tribe, including children and wives, stood before HIM and waited on HIM.

This is what will lead to answered prayer and to hearing from GOD.

And they did.
Not through Jehosaphat, but THE LORD spoke through Jahaziel (and Jehosaphat was wise enough to know that THE LORD can speak through anyone!) and told them that HE would fight the battle.

That’s it.

When GOD tells us that, it means it is a done deal.

What it doesn’t mean though is that there will be no more required of us in order to secure, receive and own our victory, but it means that GOD has decided that we WILL be victorious.

What HE will ALWAYS expect from us next (and what they did in the story!) is to give thanks, to worship HIM and to listen for and follow the further instructions.

So what they did – and all they did! – was appoint singers and PRAISED HIM!

And their enemies all died.
Not only that, GOD let them have such a great spoil that they were not able to carry all of the treasures with them.
That’s not only the victory, but also a great increase on top!

We need to remember though that they could have lost the victory GOD had blessed them with, had they not been obedient to HIS instructions and had they not stayed in close contact and in submission to HIM.

I think that’s what happens to us a lot in our daily lives – at least do I remember this from my own past.
I recall situations when THE LORD had given me a victory and I was so glad about it that I forgot to stay close to HIM until the victory was complete and for instance broke my fast or didn’t pray as intensely and often anymore or focused on the next thing – in a way, I can say that I left my humility, because of the “winner mindset” that I went into.
Not a godly winner – mindset, not one that would give GOD all the glory, but one that would let ME appear great and victorious, I may have boasted about it – not necessarily before others, but before myself – and would have believed too much that it was me or my powers or my endurance or my cleverness who got me the victory  – instead of what it truly was, instead of seeing the only reason for it: GOD.
Pride can let us loose our victory.

Another thing they also did is they kept praising HIM and also spreading the story of HIS glory and how HE gave them the victory.
GOD wants us to be witnesses, wants us to give HIM thanks, wants us to testify  – HE wants HIS goodness to be used in order to bring more souls to HIM, wants us to tell others about HIM and about what HE can do – to share the stories of the miracles GOD did for us will ensure that HE gets the glory, that HE stays pleased with us and that we are still obeying and operating under HIS favour.

Because in the end of the chapter it is also demonstrated that Jehosaphat through an allegiance with Ahaziah, a wicked and ungodly king – lost THE LORD’s favour and GOD destroyed his ships.

I recommend that you read the entire chapter if and when you need a victory from OUR FATHER.

And I will write a separate post about what came out for me from following these principles and which victories THE LORD has granted me recently.

I wouldn’t be surprised – if you looked back on a victory GOD has granted you in the past, if you would discover that you had followed these principles layed out in 2 Chronicles 20.

Can you remember?
Will you share some of your success stories with us?

I hope and pray that this will inspire, bless and heal you and that THE LORD will bless you abundantly in all areas of your life, that HE will keep you, shine HIS face upon you and give you peace. In JESUS’ name I pray. AMEN.