II Corinthians 10:1-4
II Chronicles 20:1-25
Last week during prayer, while I was thanking the Lord for smiling upon and blessing the membership, the Holy Spirit called my attention to something. 
As some of you may know our theme this year is, “Preparing for the Overflow”. The Spirit began to recall to my mind some of the many blessings He has bestowed upon the members of this local assembly. We have witnessed miraculous healings, (brain tumors, dementia, sight regained, lupus symptoms) to name a few. We have seen marriages restored, homes purchased, promotions on jobs, marriages, healthy births, souls saved and sanctified. Why just this past weekend the Lord blessed the saints with four brand new vehicles (that’s right – over the weekend!)! Without question the services have been highly anointed and sprit filled. It has been a banner year of growth. While I was thanking God for His blessings and keeping His promises, He brought this thought to my mind.
The saints are really unstoppable. Have you not read and quoted, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13); “No weapon formed against me shall prosper” (Isaiah 54:17); “…upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18); or “Greater is He that is within thee, than he that is in the world” (I John 4:4). The list goes on. But the Lord spoke to me from a different perspective. He told me to continue to encourage the saints, because the enemy will not sit idly by and see the saints being blessed without attempting to cause disruption. If we are unstoppable, how and why is the enemy successful? He convinces us to fight without our most effective weapon – praise!
Think about it, Paul warned us that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God (II Corinthians 10:4). If the war is not carnal (physical) but spiritual, then we must fight with spiritual weapons. When the enemy comes at us, he uses deceptive tactics. He’ll work through an individual (spouse, child, parent, co-worker, church member, friend, or supervisor) to get you angry. Instead of responding in a loving, godly way, we take matters into our own hands and strike back. We’ll get angry, speak in the heat of the moment, develop bitterness, envy, call on a friend and spread the venom. Soon we are so out of character it affects our relationship with God! It doesn’t happen immediately, but it develops over a period of time. Remember, as long as we use our weapons, the enemy cannot win – but if we lay those weapons down; he’s got the upper hand!
King Jehoshaphat is a great example of what happens when you use your greatest weapon. In the Old Testament, King Jehoshaphat and Judah were in quite a fix. Three nations had combined their efforts to destroy the Lord’s people (have you ever noticed when people do not like you they find one another and even though they may have had their differences, they unite against you?). The king appealed to the Lord and instructed the people to fast and pray. The Lord’s response was strange indeed. He told them to set the armed soldiers behind the worship and praise leaders. Can you imagine trusting the Lord in a battle plan like that? To us that makes no sense. However, the Lord explains why: He tells the king that the battle is not ours, it’s the Lord’s: that my friend is the answer.
When we take matters into our own hands, we are guaranteed to be defeated because we exclude the Lord! If we win with our weapons, what does God have to do? How will He get the glory? How can we declare that God is awesome and He never fails on the one hand, but when a battle or challenge comes, He lets us fight for Him? That does not make sense. What father or parent lets his or her children fight for them? Only those who are weak and cowardly. Of course we know God does not fit that description. Have you ever read what God said how we should treat our enemies? He said to love them (Proverbs 25:20-22).
Jehoshaphat and Judah listened to God and of course we know the results. The enemy was so confused by the sounds of praise that they turned on one another and destroyed themselves. It took the people of God three days to collect the spoil! What would happen if we blessed and magnified God when we felt under attack? What would happen if we would worship the Lord fervently when someone mistreats us? What would happen if we praised God with all of our might the next time we felt depression coming on? I tell you what would happen; the Lord would come in and give us the complete victory!!
My friend, don’t allow the enemy to disarm you anymore. I still hear the prophecy from my pastor, Bishop Thomas, “Brother Pruitte, and the Lord showed me He is going to give you this entire block. Stay faithful and He will bring it to pass. No one can stop you, but you”. Remember my brothers and sisters; we are unstoppable, as long as we use the correct weapons! Remember this song?
If I praise Him, He will fight my battles;
If I praise Him, He will fight my battles;
If I praise Him, He will fight my battles;
Let’s praise ye the Lord!
Put down your carnal weapons,
Pick up your weapons of praise
I bless you in the name of the Lord!!