Home JONI & FRIENDS DAILY DEVOTIONAL Joni And Friends Daily Devotional 27 August 2022 | The First Line of Defense

Joni And Friends Daily Devotional 27 August 2022 | The First Line of Defense

by Chibuzor Nwaobasi

Joni And Friends Daily Devotional 27 August 2022
Joni And Friends Daily Devotional 27 August 2022 | Saturday Message

Joni And Friends Daily Devotional 27 August 2022

Read Previous Joni And Friends Daily Devotional

TOPIC: The First Line of Defense

Joni And Friends Daily Devotional 27 August 2022 MESSAGE

By all rights it was a battle God’s people should never have won.

The odds against King Jehoshaphat and his outnumbered troops were astronomical. Several neighboring military powers had banded together, determined to wipe the little nation of Judah off the map (see 2 Chronicles 20).

By the time Jehoshaphat got the bad news – “A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Dead Sea” (v. 2) – there was very little he could do about it. The awesome force was less than thirty miles from Jerusalem’s gates.

The frightened king took stock of what he had on hand. It wasn’t much. He had no strategy no chariots, no defense, no allies, no time, and no army worth writing home about.

But whether he knew it or not, he did have a secret weapon.

Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. The people of Judah came together to seek help from the Lord; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him. […]

All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the Lord. 2 Chronicles 20: 3-4, 13

(Joni And Friends Daily Devotional 27 August 2022)

The king poured his heart out before God and all the people. He didn’t bluff or bluster. He didn’t rattle his saber or make a patriotic speech. He just prayed as though his life depended on it – and it did.

Lord, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you.[…]

Our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you. 2 Chronicles 20:6,12

The enemy was a determined marching multitude, but Jehoshaphat’s only armor was his faith in a prophet’s message.

He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. […]

You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’” 2 Chronicles 20:15, 17

This was to be no usual battle. So the king didn’t even pretend to follow accepted military procedure.

After consultation with the leaders of the people, he determined that there should be a choir leading the march, clothed in sanctified garments and singing the song “His Loving-Kindness Is Forever” as they walked along praising and thanking the Lord! 2 Chronicles 20:21 (TLB)

Talk about your out-of-the ordinary weapon of warfare! Who ever heard of putting a choir out in front of an army? Harps and lyres leading the infantry instead of tanks and artillery? How could such a thing work? And yet work it did.

And at the moment they began to sing and to praise, the Lord caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to begin fighting among themselves, and they destroyed each other! […]

So, when the army of Judah arrived at the watchtower that looks out over the wilderness, as far as they could look there were dead bodies lying on the ground—not a single one of the enemy had escaped. 2 Chronicles 20:22, 24 (TLB)

(Joni And Friends Daily Devotional 27 August 2022)

Now, that marvelous story is more than just a historical event. It has meaning for you and me this very day. Like Jehoshaphat, we are surrounded by multitudes of enemies.

Well trained and well equipped, the armies of Satan are experts at battling believers. And what one of us, in our own strength and with our meager personal resources, can withstand all those fiery darts?

How do we face such an overpowering enemy?

Ask Jehoshaphat. He would tell you that the answer is praise to the Lord. The demons hate it. Human opponents are irritated by it. But you and I need to learn to praise God in such a way that our enemy will be thrown into a complete rout. When we step out into spiritual warfare (which, by the way, happens every day), we have the resources in Christ to totally confuse our foe.

We do it with our praise.

This is such a difficult lesson for me to learn. When things go haywire in my life, it’s my second nature to do something – anything – to remedy, rectify, or resolve the problem. Make lists…set goals…get counseling…go shopping…raid the fridge…read a book on the subject…talk it out with others. Keeping busy seems like such a logical frontline defense against the devil’s attacks.

But praise? What good can talking into thin air do? How is it that words pack enough power to thwart a determined adversary? Won’t my enemies – discouragement and despondency – be better defeated by rolling up my sleeves, making fists, and meeting them head-on?

Yet we learn from Jehoshaphat that praise must be our first line of defense.

Paul put it in a nutshell for the Corinthians: “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world” (2 Corinthians 10:3–4).

All those legions lined up against us will turn on one another when they hear us lifting high the name of our mighty Lord Jesus.

You’ve got power over the enemy. Right now. It’s praise.

The Glorious Pursuit

Sing praises to God, sing praises;

sing praises to our King, sing praises.

For God is the King of all the earth;

sing to him a psalm of praise. PSALM 47:6–7

Confront your Enemy. Praise God about his character and his amazing deeds. Flip to Psalm 105 and recite it out loud to him. Think of every good gift, every happy moment, every breath-taking experience of delight and wonder… Now thank God for all these things and recount them to anyone else who will listen. Then watch him add yet another amazing deed to the long, long list.

Thank you for reading Joni And Friends Daily Devotional 27 August 2022, Saturday Message

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