There are often times that Scripture speaks out to me differently than when I have read the same Scripture before. I happened to be going through a tough season, and I started following a Bible plan to keep me accountable with my reading. I normally struggle through the historical books, but this time, God spoke to me through 1Kings 20.
Ben-hadad, king of Syria, set out to attack Ahab, king of the Israelites. King Ahab obeyed the word of God and set out to attack first. The enemy troops were in a drunken state at their post. The Israelites slaughtered the Syrians, and those who were not killed fled. After the defeat, Ben-hadad’s servants told him that the Israelites had the victory because their “gods” are “gods of the hills,” but if they were to fight in the plain, Ben hadad’s troops would be stronger and victorious.
When we are in a spiritual high upon the mountain top, we sometimes feel as though we can take on hell with a water pistol. Nothing can stop us or hinder us from doing what we set out to do, and all things are possible. The mountaintop is great, but then we find ourselves in the middle of the valley. When King Ahab and Ben-hadad met in the valley to battle, King Ahab’s troops looked like two little flocks of goats compared to Ben-hadad’s troops who covered the whole countryside. The Syrians were sure that they had the advantage. It seemed impossible for the enemy to leave with anything less than a complete victory.
It is easy to believe and obey God’s Word on the mountain peak, but it is so essential to keep our faith in the valley where doubt, trial, and tribulation try to tell us that we cannot overcome.
Summer Still
The Israelites could have let fear and anxiety speak into the situation, telling them that they had no chance. They could have thrown in the towel or flee for the sake of their own lives. They could have given themselves over to the enemy by only trusting in the circumstance, but they trusted in the Lord. The man of God spoke to King Ahab a word God had for the Israelite king before the battle. That word was, “I will deliver this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the Lord.”
It is easy to believe and obey God’s Word on the mountain peak, but it is so essential to keep our faith in the valley where doubt, trial, and tribulation try to tell us that we cannot overcome. In the valley, it seems that everything that comes against us is too big for us to fight. But it is in that same valley that God hands our enemies over to us, and they are defeated! It is in that same valley where spiritual growth occurs, and wisdom is gained. It is in that same valley that we find the hope and strength we need. It is in that same valley that God is glorified.
Because they trusted and believed in the valley, the Israelites killed 100,000 Syrian soldiers in one day. The 27,000 soldiers that fled to another city had a wall fell upon them and killed them. God is with us in the valley today just as He was with the Israelites. God is fighting for us, and the battle is already won!
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