Overpowering the Enemy
For I the Lord your God hold your right hand; I am the Lord, Who says to you, Fear not; I will help you!
—Isaiah 41:13
No matter how well we may think we run our lives, the truth is that we need help with everything. We need all kinds of help in our everyday lives. Often, realizing how much help we need takes a long time. We like to believe we can do whatever needs to be done independently and without assistance.
However, the Lord sent us a Divine Helper; therefore, we must need help. Jesus Himself continually intercedes for us as He sits at the right hand of God (see Hebrews 7:25; Romans 8:34), and that tells us that we continually need God's intervention in our lives. We are actually very needy and totally unable to handle life properly on our own.
Although we may seem to manage ourselves and our lives well for awhile, sooner or later something happens and things begin to fall apart if we are living in our own strength instead of receiving divine help.
Many times, we do fine until trouble comes. It may come in the form of a broken marriage, the death of a loved one, the loss of a job, or something else that is important to us. But eventually, we all reach a point where we have to recognize our neediness.
If we want to live life the way God intended—filled with righteousness, peace, and joy (see Romans 14:17), we have to admit that we need help and we have to receive it from the Holy Spirit, the One God sent to help us.
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through. Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.”
Luke 12:39–40
As the Allied forces prepared for the invasion of Europe in 1944, they realized that the chances of success would be much higher if they could cloak the actual intended landing zones so that the Nazis would be forced to defend the entire coast. An elaborate operation known as Operation Bodyguard was devised to sow confusion among the German high command about both the Allied strength and their intended target. They utilized double agents, allowed false-coded messages to fall into enemy hands, and even staged plywood tanks and planes. The operation was so successful that for weeks after the Normandy landing, Hitler refused to commit full reinforcements, believing that it was only a diversion and that the real attack was yet to come.
The awesome power of God is so great that He does not need to deceive the enemy in order to defeat him. It does not matter what Satan does, He cannot stop God’s plan from being fulfilled. Satan tried throughout history to destroy the Jewish people. When the time came for Jesus to be born, the devil intensified his efforts, but all to no avail. We are on the winning side! “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). We do not need to understand everything about God’s plan for the future to understand that it will take place. All we are commanded to do is to be faithful and prepared. The rest we can safely leave up to God.
Luke 12:39–40
As the Allied forces prepared for the invasion of Europe in 1944, they realized that the chances of success would be much higher if they could cloak the actual intended landing zones so that the Nazis would be forced to defend the entire coast. An elaborate operation known as Operation Bodyguard was devised to sow confusion among the German high command about both the Allied strength and their intended target. They utilized double agents, allowed false-coded messages to fall into enemy hands, and even staged plywood tanks and planes. The operation was so successful that for weeks after the Normandy landing, Hitler refused to commit full reinforcements, believing that it was only a diversion and that the real attack was yet to come.
The awesome power of God is so great that He does not need to deceive the enemy in order to defeat him. It does not matter what Satan does, He cannot stop God’s plan from being fulfilled. Satan tried throughout history to destroy the Jewish people. When the time came for Jesus to be born, the devil intensified his efforts, but all to no avail. We are on the winning side! “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). We do not need to understand everything about God’s plan for the future to understand that it will take place. All we are commanded to do is to be faithful and prepared. The rest we can safely leave up to God.
Today’s Growth Principle:
There is nothing Satan or his minions can do to stop God from accomplishing His purpose in your life.
Help!
by Joyce Meyer - posted May 28, 2016For I the Lord your God hold your right hand; I am the Lord, Who says to you, Fear not; I will help you!
—Isaiah 41:13
No matter how well we may think we run our lives, the truth is that we need help with everything. We need all kinds of help in our everyday lives. Often, realizing how much help we need takes a long time. We like to believe we can do whatever needs to be done independently and without assistance.
However, the Lord sent us a Divine Helper; therefore, we must need help. Jesus Himself continually intercedes for us as He sits at the right hand of God (see Hebrews 7:25; Romans 8:34), and that tells us that we continually need God's intervention in our lives. We are actually very needy and totally unable to handle life properly on our own.
Although we may seem to manage ourselves and our lives well for awhile, sooner or later something happens and things begin to fall apart if we are living in our own strength instead of receiving divine help.
Many times, we do fine until trouble comes. It may come in the form of a broken marriage, the death of a loved one, the loss of a job, or something else that is important to us. But eventually, we all reach a point where we have to recognize our neediness.
If we want to live life the way God intended—filled with righteousness, peace, and joy (see Romans 14:17), we have to admit that we need help and we have to receive it from the Holy Spirit, the One God sent to help us.
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