Judges 8:4 is one of those verses in the Word of God that grabs my soul big time!
 
“Then Gideon and the three hundred men who were with him came to the Jordan and crossed over, weary but pursuing.” Judges 8:4
 
“Weary but pursuing” is one of those phrases to me.
 
Background and scenario. Study Judges 6-8:  Gideon, called a “valiant warrior” by God, tried to wiggle out of his call to deliver the nation of Israel from her enemies. His personal protests were of no avail. The Lord promised to be with Gideon. God would glorify Himself through Gideon’s small, but mighty army of 300 warriors. Though outnumbered and outgunned (they had swords didn’t they!), they tore down altars of false worship, routing and defeating 120,000 enemy soldiers.
 

• In Judges 8, Gideon and his army, though tired from numerous battles, kept pursuing their enemy until they were thoroughly defeated. The victory was astonishing. Even more amazing was the fact that Gideon and company, bone weary from fighting, physically fatigued and emotionally spent, kept after the enemy until the mission was complete.  

 
Point: Weariness did not keep Gideon and God’s army from winning. Though tired, they pursued the enemy until their adversaries were defeated.
 
As I read my Bible, Gideon and his 300 men did not have a shot of Red Bull to hype them up while making war on their enemy. They pursued their adversary without a caffeine fix. Bottom line: the soldiers were tired from fighting. But tiredness did not stop them from completing their mission.
 
They pursued the fleeing enemy army until they were thoroughly destroyed, no longer a threat to God’s people.
 
Though “weary but pursuing,” Gideon’s army relied on God’s strength to complete their objective.
 
Let us be honest. Life is tiring. You and I become weary at times as we journey through this life. And all the readers said AMEN! Someone commented “Tired men run the world.”  Maybe that is why we have so many less than wise decisions, policies and programs because “tired men” make them. Just a thought.  
 
“Weary but pursuing” challenges me to evaluate my commitment to God’s plan for my life. I have counseled with people who check out on God’s best for them because they are tired. Countless I have heard in the counseling setting “I am so tired I want to quit.”
           

• I submit that we start losing when we surrender to tiredness. You and I stop winning when we cave in to weariness. 

 
Think with me for a moment. Athletes tire, but that does not deter them from competing for the prize. Business people are weary week after week, but they do not quit doing business. Parents can be worn out in a hurry raising their offspring, but they always rise up to the occasion to take care of their children. Evil men and women become weary too, but being tired does not keep them from disseminating evil.
 
·      Weary and not pursuing gets us nowhere. Weary and pursuing, with God’s help, takes us somewhere.
 
So, how do you and I keep on winning though weary? Jesus invites His weary ones to come to Him to receive rest.
 
            “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart: and you shall find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My load is light.”           Matthew 11:28-30.
 
Christians keep winning though weary by seeking and receiving rest from the Lord. The Lord renews us for each and every round of battle. As we yoke up with Jesus, we learn from Him how to be restful in our souls as we fight the good fight of faith.
 
Certainly, Jesus was weary when He went to die on the Cross. Tired beyond tired through the torturous suffering He endured, the Lord secured salvation for you and me. His shed blood and the glorious resurrection from the dead sealed the deal.
 
Though weary, Jesus was victorious! “Weary but pursuing” His Father’s will, Jesus won!!!
 
Like Jesus, Christians become weary but are victorious winners in Christ!
 
How To Win Though Weary
 

• Realize weariness is part of life. Do not deny it…do not cover it.
• Recognize what makes you weary and when you reach your tired limits.
• Regularly retreat to find spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional rest in the Lord.
• Refuse to quit simply because you are tired. Take your tired to Jesus.
• Run to win. Run your race in the renewing strength of the Lord.
• Resolve to fulfill God’s good, acceptable and perfect will and plan for your life.
• Rejoice that God makes us winners though weary!

 
Currently tired? Worn out? Weary? Seek refreshing from the Lord…. then keep winning in Jesus’ name!
 
“And do not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary.“                                                                                               Galatians 6:9
 
“And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end, that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”                                  Hebrews 6:11-12
 
A Word For Your Week: Keep pursuing God’s will and plan for your life in the renewing power of the Holy Spirit.  
 

A few years ago, I drove by a church bulletin board that posted the message Battle On!

“Battle On” struck a responsive chord in my heart.
 
“Battle On” is a battle cry for Christians who fight the good fight of faith in an unbelieving, hostile world. Battling the forces of evil can burn us out if we are not watchful. “Battle On” fired me up to stay refreshed in the Lord and battle on.
 
Our scripture for this week is found in the context of the epic battle between David and Goliath recorded in I Samuel 17.
 
“…for the battle is the Lord’s and He will give you into our hands. Then it happened when the Philistine rose and came and drew near to meet David, that David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine.” I Samuel 17:47b-48
 
King Saul and the Israeli army should have easily defeated the Philistines. But an intimidating, trash-talking giant named Goliath showed up to defy Israel and their God. Terrified by Goliath’s mocking taunts, Israel stopped battling. For forty days and nights God’s warriors stood paralyzed on the battle sidelines shaking in their sandals.
 
Enter the shepherd boy David. David sized up Goliath and decided to do battle with the giant. Note what David said and did.
 
Ø  The battle is the Lord’s. Not Saul’s, Israel’s, or David’s.
Ø  God would deliver Goliath into Israel’s hands.
Ø  David refused to retreat when Goliath moved toward him.
Ø  David ran quickly to the battle line to meet Goliath.
 
David took out Goliath with a slingshot and a few stones. He cut off Goliath’s head with the giant’s own sword! Israel prevailed over the Philistines because David battled on in the name of the Lord!
 
A married couple I was counseling confided in me that they felt they were being attacked by the devil. I responded by saying “As Christians, we are constantly under spiritual attack. Satan never backs off. Some attacks are more intense than others while some seasons of spiritual warfare are longer than others. But the battle rages on…everyday. And we must battle back in the name of Jesus Christ.” 
 

• Life is a battle. A fight.  A contest.  A struggle between spiritual forces of good and evil.

 
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
 
Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything to stand firm.”                                             Ephesians 6:11-13
 
You and I must constantly battle for our faith, our family, our friends, our ministry, and our nation.
 
Like David, you and I must run toward the battle, not away from it. Soldiers on active duty are on duty twenty-four seven. As good soldiers of Jesus Christ (I Timothy 2:3-4), Christians stand guard against the enemy and take the battle to the adversary when he attacks. 
 
The battle is the Lord’s and victory belongs to the Lord (Proverbs 21:31). God trains our hands for war and our fingers for battle (Psalm 144:1). The Lord strengthens us for battle, subdues our enemies and makes them turn their backs to us (Psalm 18:39).
 
Our battle cry is the same as David’s: I come against you in the name of the Lord (I Samuel 17:45-47).  
 
How is your battle going? Are you battling on? Are you taking the fight to Satan and his demonic forces? Are you running toward the devil and running him out of your territory? Does the devil tremble because he knows you are not afraid of him?
 
My fellow Christian, battle on! The battle is raging all around us. Battle on. Charge ahead. March onward. Fight forward. No matter what circumstances you are facing, battle on. Resist the pressure and temptation to give in or give up. Battle on!
 
Fight, fight, and fight some more. Refuse retreat. Never surrender ground you have won for the Lord. Stand tall. Do not fall. Do not stall. If you have taken a hit, do not sit. Get up. Rise up with renewed resolve. Battle on!
 
You and I will battle until we take our last breath. There is no option but to battle when the battle is on.
 
Someone reading this devotion really needs to hear the words BATTLE ON.
 
As you and I engage in the firefight of faith, do not fear. Do not faint. Rise up with courageous, confident, overcoming faith in Jesus’ mighty name. Battle on brothers and sisters in Christ.   
 
 Battle on in the name of the Lord!
 
“Fight the good fight of faith, take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”        I Timothy 6:12
 
A Word For Your Week:  The battle is on so BATTLE ON!

Life is a battle. A daily fight.  If you do not think so, you do not have a pulse!
 
God knows life is a fight. It helps me to know that my Heavenly Father knows life is a battle for His children. In the Bible, He shows us how to battle life’s battles and be victorious in Him.
 
Turn to I Samuel 17. Review the smashing victory of the shepherd boy David over the champion warrior of the Philistines Goliath.
 
I cannot help but get excited every time I read how God used David to slay Goliath. Talk about a colossal mismatch! Goliath was a nine-foot tall, seven-hundred-pound menacing, intimidating, boisterously loud, trash-talking enemy of God’s people.
 

• For forty days and nights, Saul and the Israeli army were paralyzed by fear.

 
Not shepherd boy David. Propelled by simple, sincere, strong faith, young David charged the giant with a slingshot, burying a stone in the forehead of the not-too-big-for-God giant. Then, he took Goliath’s own sword and relieved him of his head!
 
How did David win? David did not fight in the name of David, Saul, or Israel. He battled Goliath in the name of the Lord…and everyone knew when he decapitated Goliath and routed the Philistine army that there was a God in Israel to be reckoned with!
 
According to God’s Word through David, THE BATTLE IS THE LORD’S. David’s fight was not between him and Goliath. The battle was all about God fighting through David to bring down the God-mocking Philistine giant.
 
 “And that all the assembly may know that the Lord does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the Lord’s and He will give you into our hands.” I Samuel17:47
 
·      Like David, when we trust in God to fight for us, we will slay our Goliath’s and win in Him!
           
I meet often with people, the majority being confessing Christians, who think the battle is theirs. They are frustrated, depressed, burned out, worn out, and tempted to throw in the proverbial towel. Why? Because they erringly think the fight is all about them.
 
In their estimation the battle is won or lost, according to their attitude, their ability, their cunning, their resources, their gifts, and their experiences. The only problem with this approach to life’s battles is that the battle is not ours. Even if it were, you and I do not have what it takes to win on our own.
 
If you and I try to fight for ourselves or fight to help God out, we will fail.
 
Satan, the devil, the evil one, is like Goliath. As a liar, deceiver, thief and murderer, his strategy is to convince us that we can manage life on our own and we do not need Almighty God to fight for us. Satan’s goal is to slay our soul. Keep us from walking by faith faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
 
From time to time, professing Christians have asked me “What does the devil want from me?” My family. My work. My prosperity. My health. My relationships. My church. What? My reply is “Satan wants you to stop believing in Jesus.”
 
·      Too often well-meaning Christians fall by the wayside because the spiritual war they are waging in their own power fails. Then they throw in the faith towel, giving up on God and His Word. 
 
   How To Battle In The Name of The Lord
 

• Surrender to Christ’s lordship in your life. Enlist in the Lord’s army. Be a good soldier of Jesus Christ. (II Timothy 2:3-4)
• Daily put on the whole armor of God. Spiritually prepare yourself for battle every day. (Ephesians 6:10-20).
• Cast your cares, anxieties, burdens and fears upon the Lord. (I Peter 5:7).
• Rest in Jesus to lighten life’s load and to make the fight easier. (Matthew 11:28-30).
• Look to the Lord to bring the victory that you need in your life. (Zephaniah 3:14-20).
• Conquer the enemy with confidence in the One who loves you. (Romans 8:31-39).
• REJOICE IN and CELEBRATE THE VICTORIES you experience through faith in Christ! 

 
Ø  God fights for us when we acknowledge that the battle is His.
 
Ø  If you want the right victory, fight the right fight.
 
Fight the good fight of faith (I Timothy 6:6:12). Stand firm in faith in the One who has already won the war for you (I Corinthians 15:55-58). Never forget the battle and victory belongs to the Lord (Proverbs 21:31, Psalm 98:1).
 
My friend, whose battle are you fighting? Yours or the Lord’s?
 
A Word For Your Week: You will not be rattled when you battle in the name of the Lord!
 

​Gross immorality. Perverse sexual sin. Deplorable, despicable, unholy human behavior is polluting and crippling our culture, including segments of the church of Jesus Christ.
 

• Why? Because as a people have lost sight of a holy God who expects His people to live holy lives.

 
In our passage for this week, Peter exhorts and encourages Christians to live a holy life.
 
“But like the Holy One who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in all your behavior, because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” I Peter 1:15-16
 

• Our God requires that all who represent Him be holy because Hs is holy. Christians belong to God, bear His name and His likeness. You and I are to be holy because He is holy. It is as simple as that.

 
Holy and sanctified means being set apart for something sacred and special. Missionary statesman Oswald J. Sanders, when asked what it meant to be holy replied “Holiness is being like Mr. Jesus.”  As a Theological Seminary graduate and minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ for four decades, that is the simplest and most profound definition of holiness I have ever heard.
 

• Being holy is being like Jesus.

 
So, what does it mean in 2024 to be a holy believer in Christ? It means what it has always meant. Christians have been separated from the world system and set apart to serve God and His kingdom while we live on the earth. The apostle John tells us in I John 2:15-17 how the unbelieving world operates.
 
“Do not love the world, or the things in the world; if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God abides forever.”
 
Lust of the flesh…. lust of the eyes…. and the boastful pride of life equals an unholy lifestyle. Unholy behavior is terribly temporal and will pass away. Holy behavior, being like Mr. Jesus, is eternal and will never pass away.
 

• News Bulletin: Christians are to be different from the unbelieving world that conducts its lifestyle based on pride and lust. If we profess Christ as our Lord and Savior, then our daily lives should reflect the character and conduct of Jesus Christ.

 
My brothers and sisters in the Lord, it really does matter what we look at, who and what we listen to, and what we take into our minds and bodies. God’s moral standards for holy conduct have been given in the Holy Bible to protect us from the dangerous evils and ultimate destruction of an unholy world.
 

• Holiness provides safe boundaries that protect and preserve our spiritual and moral lives.

 
It is high time for Bible-believing, Christ-centered, Holy Spirit empowered people to stop messing around with what God calls unholy.
 
Facts: Pornography is not holy. Fornication is unholy. Sexual affairs are not holy. Perversion is not holy. Pre-marital sex is not holy. Same sex marriage is unholy. Desecration and mutilation of the human body is unholy. Off-color, profane, perverse, blasphemous language is unholy. Secret sin is unholy. Lying to cover the truth is unholy.
 
Believe it or not, there are some who profess Christ as their Savior and Lord indulging in these unholy behaviors as you read this.  
 

• For some believers today, sad to say, the Lord Jesus Christ is no more than a BFF, best friend forever.

 
Jesus calls us His friends in John 15:14-15. He is our forever friend indeed. But first and foremost, as God’s only Son, Jesus is holy. Jesus shed His holy blood on a cruel cross so we could live a holy life in an unholy world.
 
Because of His sacrifice for your and my sin, Jesus deserves to be reverenced, adored and obeyed as the Holy One of God.
           
How To Live A Holy Life In An Unholy World
 

• Worship God as a holy God.                                 Isaiah 6:1-7, Revelation 4:8-11
• See yourself as a holy child of God.                Leviticus 11:44-45, I Peter 2:9-10
• Cleanse yourself from sinful behavior.                                         II Corinthians 7:1
• Flee from youthful lust (Flee means run!).                                II Timothy 2:21-22
• Separate yourself from unholy influences.                             II Corinthians 6:17-18
• Commit yourself to God’s standards for holy living.           I Thessalonians 4:1-8
• Choose to reject the world’s unholy standards.                               I John 2:15-17
• Be an example of a holy man or woman of God to the next generation.

 
Please ask yourself. What does my standard of holiness look like? Am I living a holy life in an unholy world? Or have I been deceived into compromising my convictions regarding what is holy?
 
If you are flirting with unholiness, please get alone with God. Sit in His holy presence. Search your heart with the light of His holy word. Make whatever adjustments to your lifestyle necessary to line your life up with His holy standards.
 
GOOD NEWS! You, yes you, are holy. You can live a holy lifestyle because you belong to a holy God. The Holy Spirit empowers Christians to live a holy life.
 
 “Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate says the Lord, and do not touch that which is unclean, and I will welcome you. I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.”                      II Corinthians 6:17-18
 
“Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”                        II Corinthians 7:1
 
“Therefore, if a man cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. Now flee from youthful lusts, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.”                                                                                 II Timothy 2:21-22
 
A Word For Your Week: Holy or unholy in an unholy world? You choose.

​I am speaking for myself and hopefully many others who feel the way I do.
I love my country.
I am a red, white, and blue patriot through and through. I proudly served in our military. I hold dear the Constitution of the United States, Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights that clearly lay out the freedoms and principles our nation has stood and fought for nearly two hundred and fifty years.
I am seventy years old. I have witnessed our nation soar to astronomical heights of glory as a bright light, a shining example to the world of how a Bible-based Christian nation can bless humanity. I have also witnessed a frightening, free falling, perilous, shameful ever-darkening descent into evil by a man-based, secular society that rejects the Word of God and all things holy, sacred, truthful, moral, pure and decent.
My spirit is saddened and deeply grieved as I peer across our moral landscape. Satan, enemy of our souls, is winning in many quarters.
I have asked the Lord what can I do to influence my country to return to its Judeo-Christian roots?
The Holy Spirit has directed me to continue to pray, intercede, stand in the gap for America as I have done for fifty years. I sense an urgency to be more fervent than ever before.
Two scriptures are and have been on my heart for the United States.
“If My people who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray, seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. II Chronicles 7:14.
“Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God is for their salvation.” Romans 10:1.
Note the verses are for the restoration of a nation.
The II Chronicles scripture is conditional. IF man does his part, THEN God will do His part. The Lord is ready to hear, forgive, and heal our land. First, we must humble ourselves, pray, seek God’s face and turn from our wicked ways.
I believe Satan and hell trembles when Christians pray. Heaven goes to bat on behalf of those who pray.
Oswald Chambers wrote “The real business of your life as a saved soul is intercessory prayer.”
Prayer should always be the Christian’s first resort, not the last. Intercession, standing in the gap for individuals and our nation is the most important thing you and I can do.
I am not calling for a prayer meeting. I am calling for individual Christians to intercede for our nation regularly with fervent faith for spiritual revival in our land.
My brothers and sisters in Christ, please pray for America every day as part of your daily devotions. Ask God to forgive us of our sins. Weep for precious souls who have lost their way. Pray for the Lord to watch over our nation and deliver us from opportunistic enemies who would take advantage of our moral weakness.
Stand in the gap for those who walk in spiritual darkness.
Pray that their blind eyes will be opened to see the light of Jesus Christ who is the Savior of the world. Ask God to heal the brokenness in our nation’s heart and restore America to love, serve and obey our Creator and Redeemer.
The church corporately must pray for the restoration of our nation. When is the last time your local church prayed for America? God’s people must fall to their knees and seek the Lord. There is tremendous power when believers gather to pray for each other and our nation. Never forget, where two or three are gathered, Jesus is there!
What To Pray For

• A repentant return to righteousness as revealed in the Bible.
• A recognition, reverence and obedience to Almighty God.
• Protection of the innocent and helpless from the womb to the tomb.
• Moral integrity to be the rule, not the exception, in our conduct.
• Return to sexual purity in our relationships according to biblical standards.
• Respect and support for lawful authority and law enforcement.
• Integrity, accountability, honesty and transparency at every level of leadership across our nation.
• Cessation of prejudice and hatred for others because they are different.
• The church of Jesus Christ to make winning lost souls its top priority.

Almighty God hears and answers our prayers. Faithful, fervent, expectant prayer in the name of Jesus really does change things!
Join with me daily to pray for the people of the United States of America to humble themselves and turn to the Lord.
For the sake of our people, our children, and our grandchildren pray fervently to the Lord to spare America and restore our nation.
Revival and renewal through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is our only hope.
“Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.” Proverbs 14:34
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen for His own inheritance.” Psalm 33:12
 A Word For Your Week: Pray for America