God will give you victory. Part 1

"And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah".    2 Chronicles 20:3   NKJV

Jehoshaphat was taken by surprise when he heard that a great multitude were coming against them, to crush Jehoshaphat, his army and all of their land, and claim Judah for themselves. Jehoshaphat was understandably afraid but this was because the surprise had showed that he was unprepared and there was very little time to prepare themselves. He may have been fearful of what was about to happen but, the fear did not paralyse him. It was positive fear, yes he was afraid but more than that, he knew God would be able to help them - he feared the Lord. He knew what to do and that was to seek the Lord. Things take us by surprise at times, they come so quickly, without much warning and it is difficult, at the time, to know what to do. This is why we need to be alert for such times; remember the devil prowls around like a roaring lion 1 Peter 5:8. 

After seeking the Lord, Jehoshaphat put into operation, (1) Fasting, (2) Prayer and (3) Praise.

FASTING  He proclaimed a fast on the land of Judah. The people gathered together to ask help from the Lord. Fasting was one of the keys to releasing the deliverance in times of peril, and still is today. This was a proclaimed fast in which the whole nation participated. 

'We must understand, that fasting is not a tool by which we can manipulate God to accomplish something. Fasting is simply an outward indication of an inward sincerity - evidence of the urgency we feel when praying for special needs'. The Spirit Filled Life Bible 

PRAYER  It is important that you notice in verse 3 that, Jehoshaphat set himself to seek the Lord and then encouraged the people to do the same. Whenever we are in a problem, no matter how difficult it may be, we should always stop for a moment to call on God. Remember, without Him we are nothing but, with Him, we are victorious. So Jehoshaphat prayed:

'O LORD God of our fathers, are you not God in heaven, and do you not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no-one is able to withstand you?'  Try and read the rest of Jehoshaphat's prayer verse 7 - 11. In verse 12, we read: 'O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.' In other words, 'we are powerless Lord; we're scared of what may happen. We don't know what to do, but You do and, we are counting on You.' We must have prayed similar prayers when we are lying in bed unable to sleep because of worries.

Listen, we serve the one and only true God and He is able to solve any problem, rescue us from any calamity and change whatever situation we find ourselves in. Jehoshaphat had 3 keys to success, Fasting, Praying and Praise. We'll look at the last key tomorrow but, until then, concentrate on the first two keys, fasting and praying. What are you facing at this time? Are you able to say a verse 12 prayer and believe it? Admit it, you don't know what to do at the moment. You may have some ideas but, will they work? It is far better to surrender them to God because He does know what to do.

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now:

'Lord Jesus, I have sinned and I ask you to forgive me and be my Lord and Saviour. Please come into my heart, fill me with Your Spirit and give me a brand new start today.

In Jesus' Name. Amen'

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