Seventh In Ramah

The book of Habakkuk begins with him crying out to God over the horrible ways of the people. In his 3 verse prayer per the NKJV, he uses the words violence (twice), iniquity, trouble, plundering, strife, contention, wicked, and perverse judgement. You get the idea it might be a bad town and his list is growing longer every prayer. He has a heart about God’s ways and it burdens that heart to watch the news. He’s pleading with God again and again to step in. 

The Lord replies, “Look among the nations and watch – Be utterly astounded! For I will work a work in your days which you would not believe, though it were told you. For indeed I am raising up the Chaldeans, a bitter and hasty nation which marches through the breadth of the earth, to possess dwelling places that are not theirs.” Habakkuk 1:5-6 NKJV

He continues talking about His plans for what we know to be the Babylonian Exile.

Habakkuk responds in such a way that feels a little like, “But God! How can that be? How does that work with what I believe to be true?” 

“You are of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on wickedness. Why do You look on those who deal treacherously, and hold Your tongue when the wicked devours a person more righteous than he?” Habakkuk 1:13 NKJV

He lays his heart and beliefs before God, then says, “I will stand my watch and set myself on the rampart, and watch to see what He will say to me, and what I will answer when I am corrected.” Habakkuk 2:1 NKJV

He doesn’t understand, but even more than his own understanding, he’s convinced God’s ways are higher. He wants God to change his thoughts to His thoughts. 

I’m reminded of a couple of Proverbs. 

For whom the LORD loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights. -Proverbs 3:12 NKJV

Yes, if you cry out for discernment, and lift up your voice for understanding, if you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures; then you will understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. -Proverbs 2:3-5 NKJV

You start talking about correction and pride raises a defense. It sees correction very black and white; from bad to good, from wrong to right. We do not like being associated with “bad” and “wrong”. There’s many more shades to correction than that. Habakkuk wasn’t necessarily “wrong”, and he wasn’t “bad” in his thinking. He had a lifetime of experiences, core convictions, and teachings he clung to. Much like us. Yet he still waited with what seems like eagerness for correction. 

Imagine you’ve made a 4-star plate of food. Years of passed down experience, hours and hours of practice, constant learning and sharpening your skills was needed to make that plate of food. It is delicious, it looks amazing, and you are very proud of the work put in. The goal though is a 5-star dish. That means there are things that will need to change. It doesn’t mean the food is bad, there’s just always room for improvement. Its growth. 

Habakkuk was thinking on a good path, just not the path God was on. God could see more of what was going on, He could see into the future. He knew what it would take. He shared His plan with Habakkuk, told him he wouldn’t believe it though it were told to him. Pretty quick turn around time, because Habakkuk came back with all the why’s, how’s, and what’s. He also had a genuine heart for understanding; stood on his watch for “what I will answer when I am corrected”. He was aiming for Habakkuk the Prophet: Expanded Edition!

We will never be perfect. From the new baby in Christ to the life long Christian, we will always have something that can be improved by God. The great equalizer, our imperfections. We will grow in the Lord until the day we die. We know growth to be a beautiful thing, something sought after. This is the heart we should have towards correction. Whether the starting point of correction is bad or good, it can only be made better when we allow God’s change in us. 

I doubt the Chaldeans will ever be headed our direction, but there will be plenty of things we don’t understand. In those times, we need to be open with God, have the honest inquisitiveness of Habakkuk, his heart for change, then stand our watch in readiness for God’s answer. Defensiveness with God will only hold us back. “This is what I thought. Please correct my thoughts to yours. I know they’re greater.” 

How many times have we heard testimonies start with, “I had my plans, but thank God He had His”? God sees all, hears all, is everywhere all the time. Past, present, future. We can trust Him, and trust that who He corrects us into will be better than it was before. 

“Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher;
“Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.” What profit has a man from all his labor in which he toils under the sun? One generation passes away, and another generation comes; but the earth abides forever. The sun also rises, and the sun goes down, and hastens to the place where it arose. The wind goes toward the south, and turns around to the north; the wind whirls about continually, and comes again on its circuit.” Ecclesiastes 1:2-6 NKJV

Ecclesiastes. Poetic, isn’t it? The meaninglessness of existence. 

Solomon’s writings are saturated with color and beauty while also pointing out that everything amounts to -zilch-. Nothing is new, nothing will last. Everything remains in its cycle. The Bible calls him the wisest man so we can’t really argue. 

He enjoyed everything good this world had to offer. All of life’s merriment, every thing artists have been painting for centuries, anything money could buy. He had plenty! He built lavishness and ruled it with wisdom. One day, he knew he would pass on from this life like everyone else before him. Everything he labored for would be handed to someone that didn’t. Didn’t know the costs, didn’t understand the work, didn’t rule with the same wisdom. 

While the news in Ecclesiastes is a bit of a gray cloud, about 1,000 years later came the Good News. 

Jesus enters the picture. The ways of this world stay the same, but the calling changes what it’s all for. 

The things of this world are still futile. A beautiful, temporary enjoyment while we’re here. If we don’t transform our mind, that’s all they’ll ever be. The labors of our hands will one day fall, the words of our lips will return to air.

Jesus said his kingdom is not of this world. From the moment he stepped to our futile earth, our labors had a new purpose. Further His Kingdom. Help others to Heaven. Every move we make in our life now counts for something. 

We live in the ripple effects of free will. Free will is a thing of love. It’s not love if it’s controlling. All the way back at the Garden of Eden, God set the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam and Eve had everything they could ever want, everything they never would’ve thought about wanting. They still had the option to choose it. 

Our life, excluding those moments of divine intervention, is determined by our free will and the ripple of other’s free will. Every move and decision we make starts a ripple of consequences- for better or worse. Sometimes the free will of others hit us in devastating ways. The love of money, addictions, drunk driving, momentary anger. Some ways of free will are a blessing or inspiring. Have you ever witnessed a pay it forward line or the effects of a random act of kindness? How love, patience, faith, and a little bit of nurturing give us the strength to keep going? Our small acts of free will can ripple into something larger, to people we have never even met just as their’s does to us

It’s not hard to see the world is deep in the wrong side of free will. If we set our hearts after the ways of God’s heart, we can began to make a change. The words we spoke that once turned to air, now settle into the spirit of someone else to light a spark for God. Our talents and skills no longer labor in vain, but build on an everlasting foundation. Furthering His Kingdom can be acts as big as physically building churches and centers, volunteering for positions, hitting our knees for God to step into a situation, preaching, teaching, or missions. They can be as small and meaningful as a casserole for a grieving family, a toy for a child in need at Christmas, or taking time for a word of encouragement when we feel too busy. Every good and God ripple we start helps further His Kingdom. Some ripples will reach generations. 

If we build for this earth, we’re right back in Solomon’s poetic gray cloud. All is futile, vain, meaningless. If we build for the Kingdom, we can actually build on something meaningful. Our efforts have lasting effects and can impact those around us. They can lift our brothers and sisters up with us and start the Great Race in new hearts. The kingdoms of this earth will fade, but Kingdom of God will last forever. The only thing built to last. 

Joshua 7 – 8

We’re back with Joshua. This time he’s watching 5,000 of his men sneak off to lie in wait behind the city of Ai. Take 2. 

Take 1 didn’t go very well. That’s an understatement really. It drove Joshua to his knees in front of the ark of the Lord. 

That first try started well enough. Joshua sent spies to Ai to begin forming a battle plan. The spies came back and said to cut down the number of men to 2,000-3,000. Ai wasn’t large, it was sure to be an easy win. Joshua sent about 3,000 men. Higher end of the range, that seems better safe than sorry. 

Those 3,000 men quickly fled Ai. The confidence bubbling over from the Jericho victory probably came to a screeching halt. They started roll call.. names started going unanswered. I can imagine Joshua’s heart sinking lower and lower with every name. These were his men he was called to lead. They lost 36 men and the battle to what was suppose to be an easy victory. He tore his clothes as did the elders, and fell to the earth before the ark of the Lord. 

And Joshua said, “Alas, Lord God, why have You brought this people over the Jordan at all–to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? Oh, that we had been content, and dwelt on the other side of the Jordan! O Lord, what shall I say when Israel turns its back before its enemies? For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear it, and surround us, and cut off our name from the earth. Then what will You do for Your great name?” Joshua 7:7-9 NKJV

Joshua was devastated and feared the future. His mind went to so many different places, and he put them all before the Lord. Raw, real, relatable. 

So the Lord said to Joshua: “Get up! Why do you lie thus on your face? Israel has sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them. For they have even taken some of the accursed things, and have both stolen and deceived; and they have also put it among their own stuff. Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they have become doomed to destruction. Neither will I be with you anymore, unless you destroy the accursed from among you. Joshua 7:10-12 NKJV

God lays the answer out very clearly. At some point, I think we have to grow past being offended at anything that isn’t sugarcoated to our feelings. My prayer has been, “God, if it’s me, please tell me. Correct me. I’d rather the rude awakening than to continue in the wrong if it puts me outside of Your favor.” That’s exactly what He did here for Joshua. No mincing words, no opportunity for misinterpretation. A man named Achan had kept an accursed item and it reflected on all of the children of Israel. Tens of thousands of people, one disobedience. God is serious about His covenants. Everything stops right here until the people have been sanctified and the offense corrected. 

They paid in a big way, but they made it right. God gave His blessing for another try. 

Now the Lord said to Joshua: “Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed; take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land. And you shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king. Only its spoil and its cattle you shall take as booty for yourselves. Lay an ambush for the city behind it.” Joshua 8:1-2 NKJV

God gave the battle plan this time. You can put your all behind that. Instead of 2,000-3,000 men, He said take them all. All 30,000. Lay an ambush. 

Joshua went to the people and gave marching orders. Along the lines of, “This group will be right behind the city. Don’t go very far, stay ready. The rest of us are going to play out what happened the first time. Leverage our defeat so something good can come from it. When they come out against us, we’ll flee. Draw them away from the city. That’s when the ambush will happen, as the Lord commanded.”

After everything that happened, we can really see the weight of Joshua watching those 5,000 men heading out to the back of Ai. They had just been bitten. I think it would be human to decide to be part of the ambush. Make sure the city went down this time. Your spies estimated 2,000-3,000 men for the whole battle, you have 5,000 there with you. If anything goes wrong, you can handle it from there. Insure victory. Instead, he watched them leave.

…but Joshua lodged that night among the people. Joshua 7:9 NJKV

It’s not specified and I’m no strategist, but I’m guessing if you want to draw out the king and all the people in the city, it would take a large number of men, the elders, and none other than Joshua himself. Faith and obedience, what’s good for the cause. 

The ambush to the west of Ai, Joshua and everyone else in the valley. No high ground, no advantage. Just out in the open, depending on God. 

Just like it was wrote up. Ai saw the Israelites in the valley and didn’t pass up their vulnerable position. Full steam ahead, they completely missed the ambush lying wait. Joshua and his men gave an incredible “oh no!” performance, and fled toward the wilderness. All the men of Ai hot on their trail. The city left completely unguarded. 

Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Stretch out the spear that is in your hand toward Ai, for I will give it into your hand.” And Joshua stretched out the spear that was in his hand toward the city. So those in ambush arose quickly out of their place; they ran as soon as he had stretched out his hand, and they entered the city and took it, and hurried to set the city on fire. Joshua 8:18-19 NKJV

Ai’s troop looked behind them. Smoke billowed from the city. No more home base, no where to run. Joshua’s men dropped the act and turned back towards them. The men from the ambush now pursuing from the other side. God gave them victory. 

Again, from the human point of view, we would’ve completely understood Joshua taking safe guards for round two. A single man’s disobedience had been so costly. It would’ve been easy to become suspicious. Dial back the full trust a little bit. Hold the fire himself. But Joshua did the opposite. His “safe guard” was the blessing and word from God. He was obedient, put himself and his men in a vulnerable position in the valley, then showed great humility by running away from Ai. Joshua, son of Nun.. fleeing? Can you imagine? He wasn’t worried about his name or reputation, he was just obedient. He kept the faith that God would do as He said He would. 

Our battles are not won by the ways of our flesh. They are not won through logic or our smartest strategies. Our battles are won by the unexpected thing. The ambush of faith. 

Joshua 2, 6, 9

Joshua 2 is where we first meet Rahab. She was the harlot of Jericho (or one of at least) and lived on the city wall. Some historians say houses built on the wall or close to it were where the poor lived. They would be the first ones under attack in war, so not great property value. It paints the picture that Rahab didn’t have much. She probably didn’t have a lot to offer in exchange for her safety. She went with genuine help and kindness. Rahab hid the two Israelite spies before ever mentioning her request. She put that kindness first as an act of good faith. 

Joshua 2:12-13 “Now therefore, I beg you, swear to me by the LORD, since I have shown you kindness, that you also will show kindness to my father’s house, and give me a true token, and spare my father, my mother, my brothers, my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death.” 

The men agreed to deal kindly and truly with her during and post-conquer under certain terms. Her nor her family could tell of their plans. When she saw them enter the land she must bind the line of scarlet cord in the same window she had let them escape, and make sure her family was together in her house. She agreed and bound the scarlet cord in the window. That was her lifeline, she did it right away. 

When the Israelites started their march around Jericho, Rahab had to feel on the brink of her salvation. The king of Jericho knew they’d be coming, they had their city locked up tight. I can see Rahab sitting by the window, watching the Israelites approach the city. I can see her running to tell her family, “This is it! Make sure all of your things are together and come over quickly!” Maybe she did a head count to make sure all family members were accounted for when the Israelites got closer. I bet she double and triple checked that scarlet rope was still in the window. The Israelites got to the city. They started walking around the wall, rams horns could be heard. They must be looking for a way in right? Maybe it’s a mind game before attacking the city? But no.. they returned to their camp. I wonder how Rahab felt watching them leave. Defeat maybe? Confusion? At some point, I think she would’ve remembered God’s reputation and the reputation of Joshua. She might not have known the plan, but this wasn’t the end. Hope is not lost. The scarlet rope stayed in the window. The next day they showed up again. I bet some array of the same feelings flushed her face. Everything’s still in order? Everything is ready to go? Everyone accounted for? Then they left again. She could hear her salvation, see it so close she could drop down to it, but the gates were still locked. The Israelites still on the other side. 6 days in a row they came and left. That scarlet rope probably more tattered, a little thread barren by now. What would lead her to believe the 7th day would be any different? They’re walking again. Everything’s together. Everyone’s here. There’s the rams horns again. Wait.. what’s that shouting? Why is the wall—? The moment she realized the wall was cracking had to be pure pandemonium. This is it! It’s happening! Salvation is here. What a rush! But what if they forget? The scarlet rope was probably in the rubble with the wall. They wouldn’t forget about their vow? They’ve seen it walking all this time, right? There’s no telling the magnitude of feelings she felt until she saw the men that came to save them. The adrenaline until they were out of the city safe. 

Word got out quickly of all Joshua had done at Jericho and Ai. Surrounding kings were binding together to create a more powerful army. Instead of joining, the Gibeonites devised a plan of deception. Faux ambassadors they made themselves gathering old sacks, mended wine skins, patched up sandals, thread barren garments, and some dry, moldy bread. Off they set to deceive their way into a covenant with their neighbors at Gilgal, Joshua and the Israelites. They really leaned into it, told them a wild tale of traveling from a far country. 

(Joshua 9:12-13) “This bread of ours we took hot for our provision from our houses the day we departed to come to you. But now look, it is dry and moldy. And these wine skins which we filled were new, and see, they are torn; and these our garments and our sandals have become old because of the very long journey.”

A flat out lie against one of the most feared men of the times. Joshua didn’t take it to God, he believed the “evidence” in front of him and made a covenant with them. 

It wasn’t long before he found out he had been tricked. I’m sure he stood there for a moment as he was realizing these people had actually loaded up moldy bread. Probably went over the fine details of this covenant very carefully on the way to them. Was it specifically with the people or the land? There has to be some fair game here? He was mad, but good at his word. He didn’t destroy them like I’m sure he wanted to. Instead they became servants of the people, woodcutters and water carriers. I wonder if they wished they had just added their numbers in with the mega army forming. 

Deliverance. That’s what Rahab was after. That’s what the Gibeonites were after. Rahab heard of the reputation of the God of Israel and of Joshua. She wanted to be a part of that instead of the fate she knew was coming. She did the right thing then stood on faith. A scarlet rope in the window becoming tattered and thread barren as a sign of that faith. Her family was spared, her life became something she could be proud of, and her name forever in the lineage of Jesus. The Gibeonites heard of their reputation as well. They stood on their own cunning ways and sought out to deceive. Their already thread barren clothes a sign of that deceit. They made their own opportunity. They became servants for the rest of their days. 

“The ends justify the means” is creating our own deliverance. Taking things into our own hands instead of trusting God doesn’t honor Him. We become servants to whatever end result we’ve created. When we put all our faith in God and wait on Him.. honor Him, do our part to further His Kingdom.. our deliverance turns into a legacy. God uses our thread barren faith to make us more than conquerors. 

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13

Like a true foundation, these three remain. They can never be taken away or destroyed.   They simply exist and always will. The devil hates them, they mess with his plans. He can’t do anything with them, so he has to cover them. A devious way he piles things on top, is with our own emotions. He uses our flesh to manipulate the thing God gave us to enjoy life and be safe in it. 

Over faith, he puts fear. Over hope, he puts sadness. Over love, he puts anger. Anger in love turns to hate. 

We have to make sure our emotions are in line with the intentions they were given to us. Fear was given to keep us safe. Healthy caution. Probably don’t touch the fire. If you’re up high, be quite a bit more careful. Our flesh turns it into a road block. It keeps us from moving forward at all. The devil walks in and uses it as an over weighted blanket to make the light of our faith seem dim. 

Sadness was given to us by God. It’s natural in hard circumstances and helps us regulate. It gives loss its moment. It can be the basis of compassion and empathy. Can prompt us to change, turn into prayers and wisdom. The devil can use it to sink us. He uses it to create a thick darkness that makes us turn our back on the light of hope.

“The greatest of these is love”. Love has potential to carry us past our human strength. It has potential to build, heal. God’s love for us is beginning of the story of grace and woven all throughout our walk with Him. In our lives, it multiplies every good thing. The devil uses anger as a Love 180. Anger is given to us by God to see injustice and grow passion for the things He cares about. It’s a signal that something isn’t right and can give us courage if channeled correctly. Unchecked, the flesh can be blinded by anger. We say and do things we wish we could take back. Instead of tearing down strongholds, we tear down good things we’ve built. We hurt others. The devil uses our anger as destruction. Sometimes in a quick moment, but sometimes grown into hate. Destruction on a much larger scale.

We have to take the time to make sure what we’re feeling is under submission to God, acting as He intended. Is this fear keeping me safe or keeping me from acting in faith? Is this sadness a compassion or making everything too dark to carry on? Is this anger fueling me to make things right or tear things down? 

It’s incredibly hard to deny self, but realizing something like “This hate is not of God, and my anger is not submissive to Him” is life changing. It halts the path you’re on and turns you back in the direction you need to go. It stops destruction and begins building again. It makes wise decisions and believes for the future. It asks God to pick us back up again and let us borrow the strength to carry on. Factory resetting our emotions to work as they were created allows the voice of God to speak more directly to us. It takes the litter off of faith, hope, and love to give us a fuller life. 

This blog post was a personal study I was lead to by God after questions about true worship. It was convicting to my own life, and I wanted to share. 

There are several different types of OT offerings for different needs and abilities. Understanding the heart of them is a help to form our relationship and worship with God. The person sacrificing is called the “worshiper” because the sacrifice and offering was worship.

Jesus came to be the sacrifice. He came so we didn’t need the blood of an animal and we could go on our own behalf. The heart of the sacrifices were clearly extremely important to God and I believe still are. Every single detail from the construction and appearance of the temple, layout of the holy place, priestly garments, and sacrifice were specifically laid out by God because He cared about them greatly. 

One of the offerings was an Incense Offering. There was a specific blend of spices used to make this incense. The priest would take hot coals and place them on the incense altar. He would then put the incense on top. It would fill the holy place with a pleasing aroma to God and also create a protective smoke around the mercy seat. The hot coals are representative of God’s judgement. This is guidance and also conviction. We can put obedience here. Revelations says that our worship and prayers are incense and creates a pleasing aroma to God. Our obedience to God’s judgement with our worship + prayer now creates the “protective smoke”. 

Worship. My question was.. what is it fully? There is more to it than lifting our hands on Sundays (beautiful expression) since we’re to live a life of worship. What is counted as worship? Short answer- Sacrifice and offering. Every sacrifice ended with a pleasing aroma to God (which is worship). The heart of these sacrifices outline it beautifully. The Burnt Offering signified full devotion to God and atonement for our sins. The Grain Offering signified dedication and praise. The Peace Offering was gratitude for the peace God had given (blessings) and fulfilling a vow. Those were voluntary acts of worship. The Sin Offering was a mandatory sacrifice for unintended sins and transgressions against God’s law (repentance). The Trespass Offering was a mandatory offering when a specific sin had been committed or an offense against what was God’s or withholding what was God’s. The sacrifice needed to be unblemished (enter Jesus). Looking at the heart of this, God wanted the best of the flock, grain, offering, whatever it may be. In the Peace Offering, God receive the choice cut of meat. That showed commitment, reverence, and reliance. Give God the best, He’ll take care of the rest. 

We were created to be worshipers. It’s very serious to God. Worship is sacrifice and offering. It’s devotion, commitment, gratitude, asking forgiveness, being good to our word, relying on God. Repentance, change for the better. It’s giving our best. It’s dedication to God and his house. It’s obedience to His judgements and convictions. It’s giving Him the first parts and the best parts of us. Instead of planning out our week, it’s walking into prayer with a blank piece of paper and asking God to fill it. It’s putting things of God on the list first, and then planning everything else. 

We are to be people of God. Not people of social obligations, people of extracurricular activities, people of career goals. Not people of fear, people of doubt, people of anger. People of God. Anything that takes His place in that phrase is an idol. In Malachi, the Israelites were offering with lame and sick animals. They planned their own lives with their best and then gave God the rest out of obligation. In return, they went spiritually stagnant and God called them the Land of Wickedness. They became dependent on the Persian Empire and the life they could create all by themselves without God’s blessings. It’s fine to have a social life and be involved in extracurricular activities.. fellowship is of God! It’s fine to want good things in your career.. God wants the best for you. It’s fine to have emotions as long as they’re as God intended and submissive to Him. The difference is bringing everything to God first and letting Him lead in them. Not relying on our own strength or letting emotions lead while letting Him follow along hoping He’ll throw out a blessing or two. We have to make sure we don’t pass by God and put our things first. When His people worshipped as they were called, He made them NATIONS. When they didn’t, He called them wicked. 

Because of Jesus, we have been given the freedom to worship God anywhere, any time and can have a more abundant relationship with Him than ever seen before. We have been given the grace to have our sins erased through repentance no matter where we are. We can give offerings of ourselves anywhere and have God everywhere. We can have a life of worship. 

Nehemiah 1-7

When Nehemiah heard the walls of Jerusalem had been destroyed and the gates burned, he was greatly burdened. He wept, mourned, and prayed before God. He took his requests to the king, then called upon a group of people to help rebuild. He stood against those who didn’t have an ounce of good intention, to the point the workers built with one hand. Their other hand held a weapon. 

When everything was completed, Nehemiah prepared to open the gates he had kept such a burden for. He gave clear instructions.

And I said to them, “Do not let the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot; and while they stand guard, let them shut and bar the doors; and appoint guards from among the inhabitants of Jerusalem, one at his watch station and another in front of his own house.” (Nehemiah 7:3) 

The city was empty, but still they guarded it. They guarded while they built, they guarded while they waited. They guarded their homes because that’s the enemy’s next move. He wants to destroy by any means necessary. The purpose of this city, those walls.. that important. 

Your purpose is that important. The world needs what you’re going to do for God. Your children need it, your grandchildren need it.  If you’ve been attacked.. if you’ve been hurt, abused, isolated, torn down, misunderstood, under fire.. rebuild. Don’t let it stop you. The devil knows you have a purpose, too. He’s fighting with everything to keep you from it. He may throw fiery darts, he may burn the walls down, but the purpose of your city has not changed. Your value to God is the same. It’s never too late to build it back up.

God wants to heal you, restore you, and use you. Stand on guard against the attempts of the enemy while you take it all back. Stand on guard at the gate. Watch the places he tries to hide in your mind. Stand in protection of your family, your home, and plead the blood over them. The devil can’t have them, and he can’t have what we’re called to do.