When Faced with the Impossible

The title of this post could have come out one hundred different ways.  It could have read …

When the enemy comes knocking at your door

When the battle is looming

In times of uncertainty

When disaster draws near

Have you been there? Are you there now?

The reality is crisis will come. It will. The question is: How do we have confidence smack dab in the middle of it?

As my husband and I faced a difficult situation of our own last week, the LORD brought me back to a passage in 2 Chronicles 20.

It’s a story of crisis, and a picture of confidence in the midst.

In 2 Chronicles 20, King Jehoshaphat was warned that his nation was about to be under attack by three powerful tribes. He was facing what looked like an impossible situation.

What was his reaction to the devastating news? He felt fear.

Let’s not gloss over this part too quickly. We can’t glamorize the situation at hand. This is scary stuff. There were three powerful armies against one. This one blow could mean sudden disaster for Israel. The odds were stacked against them. There was no way out. So, yes. Jehoshaphat was afraid.

But this is part of what captures me. Jehoshaphat’s response was not marked by his knee-knocking fear. It was defined by his resolve.   

Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and proclaimed a fast for all of Judah. (verse 3)

Jehoshaphat was devoted to the LORD. His heart was set on seeking God. So instead worrying, planning or strategizing, he humbled himself, worshiped and prayed.

Can the same be true of you and me? When crisis comes – when the enemy draws near – when we are faced with the impossible – do we lay ourselves low in prayer?

Prayer was not the king’s last resort; it was his first. It was the source of his strength. His only confidence. It was a response born out of a settled conviction that God is trustworthy. This type of resolve doesn’t grow over night. It grows slowly by believing God one little step at a time.

HOW HE PRAYED

As he stood before his people, Jehoshaphat acknowledged God’s sovereignty. He reminded God of the goodness of His character. He recounted God’s promises to His people. He pleaded for God’s justice. And he declared his total dependence. Trust echoed through every word spoken.

This is the prayer that ran through my mind last week when sudden disaster loomed on our horizon.  Fear beckoned, but I wanted to choose better. Without words of my own, I borrowed Jehoshaphat’s prayer.

We don’t know what to do Lord, but our eyes are upon you.  

GOD’S ANSWER

After we’ve laid ourselves low – after we’ve acknowledged that God is over and in and through it all – after we’ve poured ourselves out and placed our lives in His ever-capable hands, we receive His answer. Our confidence.

Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.

I believe God’s word to Jehoshaphat still applies today. “Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this {fill in the blank}. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.”

Do not be afraid of that diagnosis, that false-accusation spoken against you, that loss of job, that candidate winning in the polls, that rebellious teenager, that …

It’s not your battle. It’s God’s.

HOW DO WE LET GOD FIGHT FOR US?

#1: We recognize that the battle isn’t ours.

In every battle, there is more at stake that meets the eye.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of the dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Ephesians 6:12

Flesh and blood battles are mere tools for our real enemy lurking in the spiritual realms. With every fight in the physical, their is a greater spiritual battle at stake. So in every battle, we entrust ourselves to the One who fights on our behalf.

#2: We trust in His strength.

Not our own.

You and I don’t have what it takes to make it through this battle alone, and we don’t have to. Instead we are invited to

Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. Psalm 105:4

So we make the trade and rest in the exchange. His strength for our weakness. All we have to do is lean in.

#3: We rest in His sovereignty.

And release any (perceived) control we think we have.

We don’t have to know how it’s all going to play out. We don’t have to be able to predict (or even understand) His ways. We simply trust that He really is over and in and through it all. We rest in his sovereignty because we know He’s good and always working on our behalf. It’s not only what He does; it’s who He is.

And we put our hope in the LORD, not in a particular outcome.

 

When faced with a sudden crisis, Jehoshaphat sought the LORD. He laid himself before his Maker and expected God to be God.

His only confidence rested in the faithfulness of his God to uphold him. 

Jehoshaphat appointed men to go out ahead of the army and worship. As the men sang, the LORD delivered them from the hands of the enemy. Israel prevailed without lifting their swords.

…

I don’t know about you, but I need stories like this – stories that refocus my perspective and bolster my faith. God uses them to lift my eyes. They remind me of the confidence that is ours in Jesus – especially in the middle of crisis.

Friends, I don’t know what impossible you’re facing right now – I don’t know what uncertainty lies ahead, but this I know: Our God is real and He can be trusted. So …

Go out and face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you. (verse 17)

and He will be enough.