ONLINE CHURCH BULLETIN

Feeling Powerless?

2 Chronicles 14.8 Asa had an army of three hundred thousand men from Judah, equipped with large shields and with spears, and two hundred and eighty thousand from Benjamin, armed with small shields and with bows. All these were brave fighting men.
9 Zerah the Cushite marched out against them with a vast army and three hundred chariots, and came as far as Mareshah.
10 Asa went out to meet him, and they took up battle positions in the Valley of Zephathah near Mareshah.
11 Then Asa called to the LORD his God and said, "LORD, there is no one like you to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, O LORD our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this vast army. O LORD, you are our God; do not let man prevail against you."
12 The LORD struck down the Cushites before Asa and Judah. The Cushites fled,
13 and Asa and his army pursued them as far as Gerar. Such a great number of Cushites fell that they could not recover; they were crushed before the LORD and his forces. The men of Judah carried off a large amount of plunder.
14 They destroyed all the villages around Gerar, for the terror of the LORD had fallen upon them. They plundered all these villages, since there was much booty there.
15 They also attacked the camps of the herdsmen and carried off droves of sheep and goats and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.

Asa’s army of 580,000 brave fighting men prepared to battle Zerah’s vast army. They took their battle stations but they were not ready to fight. They were ready to pray. Notice that Asa prayed to the Almighty in regard to the powerless and the mighty. How could he have considered his 580,000 brave, well-equipped soldiers as powerless? Asa knew enough of Israel’s history to know that his army would have been powerless against his foe if they went forth without the Almighty.

As we approach challenges in various aspects of our lives we may feel powerless. We turn to the Almighty. We acknowledge our reliance on Him and ask Him to bless. 

Romans 8.31 What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
 
Prepare for your battles with prayer, knowing that the Almighty assures
ultimate victory.

Dear Almighty Father, we are so grateful for the assurances of Your love and power that we find in the Scriptures. We know that You are with us and that you will give us all things. Help us to be strong in faith and to be overcomers in each of our battles with the Evil One. May we face each challenge with prayer and confidence in Your deliverance. Help those who are hurting. We ask this in the name of Christ, the Victorious One. Amen.

1 John 5.14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: 
15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
Only God can know HOW our prayers WORK but we believe HE answers.

Let us be thankful and prayerful!

Love
Brad Forgy