Joshua 8:1,  Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid do not be discouraged. Take the whole army with you, and go up and attack Ai.  For I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land.”

Israel had just faced an unexpected defeat at Ai and now God was telling them that they needed to go back.  It was no little thing that they had been defeated by Ai, it was a small city that should not have been a problem for their army, especially since they knew God had promised to give all of their enemies over to them.  Now what would all of the rest of the people in the land, who before this had feared them, think?  God told Joshua to let go of those thoughts and frustrations and to go back and take the city because He was giving it to them.  There had been sin in the camp, 1 man who chose to rebel against what God had said and it caused their first defeat, but that had been dealt with and God was telling them to let it go and move forward to take the promised land!

Sometimes you may have to fight the same battle more than once, but if God is calling you to that battle He will give you victory.  Don’t allow the enemy to discourage you, frustrate you, and keep you where you are because God didn’t bring you this far to only come this far.  Sometimes our thinking and our faith seem to be based on what we personally are capable of or what others say is possible, but our thinking and faith should be based on what The Word of God says, what He has promised, and Who He is.  One of satan’s greatest tools these days is to get Christians to be so afraid to believe for anything for fear of being accused of prosperity thinking that they don’t believe Him for anything. And no, I don’t believe you can just think positive and pray and poof you have the car of your dreams sitting in your driveway or that if you have faith everything just falls into place all of the time.  Life is hard and if you are striving to have a close walk with God I can assure you that all hell is likely to come against you, and that is where your faith in Him will guide you through all of that into His best!  Don’t fear it ~ He will fight with you and for you, He loves you and His desire is to guide you into all He created you to be.  

So, as you face that challenge, storm, or maybe the biggest battle of your life remember these words from Isaiah 41:10, “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”  God loves you so much and if you will just draw close to Him and walk with Him every day you can cling to what He says in Jeremiah 29: 11-13,  “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.  Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”  Do you want to find Him?  Seek Him with your whole heart.  Trust Him and allow Him to guide you into all He has planned.  Take a moment and ask Him what His dreams are for your life!  Trust me, HIs plan for you is bigger than yours because His plan is to use your life to bring Him glory and to show others who He is.  So, whether you are “in the fire” or on the mountaintop, you never know whose life you are touching.  You don’t know who is watching and God wants to use you and your walk with Him to help them.  It’s not just about us  It’s about the other lives we change because of Him in our lives that will matter in the end.  God wants to show up mighty in your life but that means you must trust Him and walk with Him.

So no matter what you have to do today, be strong in Him, and don’t be discouraged, He is going with you. Seek His face.  Ask before you jump (that goes for in or out of something).  Don’t allow negative thoughts into your mind to discourage you, cling to Him and His promises ~ He will deliver you!  He will rescue you and guide you if you will just put it all in His hands knowing that then truly HIs best is yet to come!

Quote:  “Courage doesn’t always roar, sometimes it’s the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow’.”  ~ Mac Anderson (Simple Truths)