Then he encouraged them by saying, “Be strong and courageous! Don’t be afraid or discouraged before the king of Assyria or before the large army that is with him, for there are more of us than with him. He has only human strength, but we have Yahweh our God to help us and to fight our battles.”     2 Chronicles 32:7-8 HCSB

Who fights for you? Maybe the better question to ask is who do you go to in times of trouble? Do you rely on a friend, a relative, hope that first responders will get there in time?

Well, in our Scripture passage for today, king Hezekiah was speaking to his people. Assyria was a powerful nation with a huge army. They had been gobbling up nations all around Judah. They had conquered the northern kingdom of Israel and now they had their sights set on the southern kingdom of Israel.

God had allowed them to conquer the northern kingdom as punishment on the northern kingdom for their idolatry and sinful ways. God had sent prophets to warn them to repent or suffer the consequences. They chose not to repent and were taken captive by Assyria when God executed His judgment on them.

But meanwhile in the southern kingdom, Hezekiah had brought about reform. He was leading his people to trust in the Lord. When the king of Assyria came to start attacking Judah, Hezekiah began to fortify Jerusalem and cut off the outside water supply. He trusted in the Lord, but he took the necessary measures to do what he could do to help. He encouraged his people to be brave and courageous.

Being brave and courageous doesn’t mean you have no fear. I have always believed that if you face a potentially dangerous or deadly situation and you have no fear, that’s a problem. It’s normal to experience fear. John Wayne once said, “Courage is being scared to death but saddling up anyway.” We face fear with action. Our first action should be prayer.

There are numerous cases in the Bible where small, even tiny, armies defeated huge armies with God’s help. One of my favorites such is the case of Elisha the prophet in 2 King chapter 6, vv. 13-23. The king of Aram wanted to kill Elisha, so he found where Elisha and his servant were staying and sent a huge army to surround them. When Elisha’s servant woke up, he looked outside and saw the huge Aramean army. He called Elisha to come and see. Elisha looked out and saw the army of God which was much larger than the Aramean army. He told his servant, “Don’t be afraid for those who are with us outnumber those who are with them.” This is similar to what Hezekiah told his people.

God’s army is bigger and more powerful than any army or force that will ever come against us. We must trust in Him to fight our battles. We must understand God fights for us to bring about our good and His glory. No matter how bad the situation may seem, we must be brave and courageous knowing God’s got this.

Don’t look at the huge army coming against you, focus on God. Focus on Him and His army that is way bigger. In the battle of Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20, Jehoshaphat had several armies coming against his small nation. He cried out to God. God told him he would not have to fight; he would only need to stand still and watch as God delivered them from the hands of these armies.

Are you facing a battle? Don’t try to fight it on your own. Allow God to do the fighting for you. Trust in Him. Let Him guide you. We are told in Romans 8:28 that God works all things for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. If we take care of God’s business, He will take good care of our business. Trust in Him today.

If you want to be victorious, give it all over to Him.

Have a great day!