VICTORY’s ALREADY WON

SCRIPTURE:  “….the word of the LORD came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”  He said, “I have been very zealous for the LORD…for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword.  And I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.”  1 Kings 19:9b, 10  (NASB)

 Life for the Christ follower is in certain respects comparable to a football fan watching a game that has been earlier recorded: the winner is already known, and  yet the dedicated sports fan still retains an eagerness  to observe the “play by play” which led to the foreknown victory!  We are more than conquerors through Christ who loves us, but just like the battle-weary prophet Elijah in today’s Scripture, we too can lose heart now and again.  In the complexities of our daily lives, we can easily find ourselves walking by sight rather than by faith in what our Lord has said. (This reality alone points out the unsurpassed advantage of having an early morning time with our Savior)!  When our spiritual reserves get low, we can find ourselves entering a cave of our own making and hosting a private little pity party!  (Have you ever hosted one of those)?  If you have grown weary, like Elijah, heed the voice of your Savior!  Open up your Bible—that’s right—unsheathe your “sword” that He has provided and replenish your spiritual reserves! (Ephes. 6:17)
 
Time spent in quiet meditation on specific scriptures—the Psalms,  or epistles such as Philippians or  II Peter, for example—is indispensable in reminding us of how we as God’s people are to  refocus our heart when tempted by discouragement.  Praying God’s promises back to Him help us to persevere through adversities, realigning our perspective on our immediate circumstances.  While those hurdles may not be immediately leveled  from our pathway,  we will nonetheless be strengthened to get up and resume following His instructions in doing the next thing –wherever He has presently assigned us.  Your faith, just like Elijah’s, will have grown deeper roots after you’ve reached the other side of your trial.  (1 Peter 5:10)
     
PRAYER:  Dear Father, thank You for reminding us of the need to stand in the spiritual authority which Christ Jesus won for us when the enemy of our souls was defeated at Calvary, and Your testimony of that victory was believed!  Thank You for the everlasting victory!  Amen!

(By Denise Diggs)