Banner Held High

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We go through tough times.  We get news we don't want to hear, we encounter changes that we don't necessarily embrace, we enter times of suffering.  Those times bring uncertainty, anxiety, and sometimes pain.  But I've seen that it's in those times that we also grow and learn things that we may have only been able to learn in those circumstances.

  I don't believe that God brings bad circumstances upon us, but that He uses them, working together all the things that we face for our good and His glory.  It's in realizing that, that brings freedom.  That no matter what the circumstance speaks, He's still in charge and we can be sure that He's got our best interest at hand.

So, instead of being chained to our challenge, we are freed by the truth that God is for us.  And, if God is for us who or what can be against us?

  

Who or what can stand against God?

Can sickness stand against a God who bears the name Jehovah Rapha, God the Healer?

  Can debt and loss stand up against a God who bears the name Jehovah Jireh, God the Provider?

  When we find ourselves in a dark place of despair, can that place stand up to a God who bears the name Jehovah Raah, the Lord our Shepherd?

What place do you find yourself in today?  Is there a Name of God that can bear your pain today?  A Name that speaks a different outcome than the situation you now stand in?

How about Jehovah Nissi?

  It was during a great battle, documented in the Old Testament, that God revealed Himself to the Israelites as Jehovah Nissi.  Joshua led the Israelite army into battle with their enemy the Amalekites. Moses stationed himself on a hill top and prayed with his hands stretched to the sky over the battle.  As his hands were held high the Israelites prevailed, but as they tired and fell the battle changed in favor of their enemy.  So Aaron and Hur came alongside Moses, set him on a rock and held his hands up until the battle was won.  Moses' hands held up like a banner over God's people as God caused them to be victorious.  After the battle Moses built an altar to God as a way to remember that victory over the enemy.

  He named it Jehovah Nissi, the Lord Our Banner of Love and Protection.

So wherever you find yourselves today, whatever you're dealing with, wave that banner, Jehovah Nissi over yourself.  Wave it in prayer as you give thanks for his unfailing love and constant protection.  Wave it as you go about your day and are reminded of the battle at hand, speaking His Name over it, banner held high.

Wave it and watch for the victory.

Is this your first visit to Freedom Friday?

 We're embracing freedom each Friday here in 2012.

  Click here for a list of the other posts in the series.