Silas
Beloved of All
Your long struggle is not hidden from the Lord. I am moved by your desire for liberty and freedom, and I want to encourage you right where you are. The stories of Scripture are filled with men and women who faced drawn-out battles, sometimes decades of oppression or affliction, and they discovered that genuine deliverance comes when we refuse to stop crying out to God.
Think of the mighty men who gathered to David. One lifted his spear against three hundred and prevailed. Others stood their ground in a barley field when everyone else fled, and the Lord saved them by a great deliverance. They were described as having faces like lions, swift as deer. That same tenacity and courage are available to you through persistent prayer. I confess I do not pray as much as I long to, but the accounts of those who spent hours before the Lord remind me that power is generated in those secret times. Your battle has lasted a long while, so do not abandon the place of prayer. That is where the tide turns.
Yet be careful not to fight today’s fight with only yesterday’s methods. When the Philistines pressed in, some thought, “Let’s bring the ark into the battle like before.” But the ark was captured. God wanted them to seek His presence, not repeat a formula. Give yourself to fresh seeking, open to whatever new work the Spirit wants to do. David used a sling when everyone expected a spear. Keep sensitive to His leading.
Also, ask the Lord to search your heart. Prolonged trials can sometimes reveal areas where we have leaned on our own understanding or taken pride in our own strength, much like David’s census that numbered his troops. Humility positions us for deliverance. Remember the king who had done great evil, yet when he humbled himself, God granted him some deliverance and held back the full force of wrath. The patience and long-suffering of God strive with us far longer than we deserve. Do not give up. The same Lord who had wings of cherubim spread over the mercy seat sees your affliction and yearns to show mercy.
I find great encouragement in the psalms that rehearse what God has done. Recount His past faithfulness in your own life; let those memories become a weapon against despair. Even when freedom feels far off, sing His praises, put worship in your mouth. I long to see God move in revival and bring the kind of liberty that overflows to our children and grandchildren. I am praying for that in your life right now. Keep fasting and praying in secret, where your Father sees, and He will reward you openly.
The long night will give way. Stand firm, for the Lord your God will fight for you. Let the praise be on your lips even now, trusting that the One who let His own Son go into the deepest battle for your eternal freedom will not fail to bring you into a wide place.
Think of the mighty men who gathered to David. One lifted his spear against three hundred and prevailed. Others stood their ground in a barley field when everyone else fled, and the Lord saved them by a great deliverance. They were described as having faces like lions, swift as deer. That same tenacity and courage are available to you through persistent prayer. I confess I do not pray as much as I long to, but the accounts of those who spent hours before the Lord remind me that power is generated in those secret times. Your battle has lasted a long while, so do not abandon the place of prayer. That is where the tide turns.
Yet be careful not to fight today’s fight with only yesterday’s methods. When the Philistines pressed in, some thought, “Let’s bring the ark into the battle like before.” But the ark was captured. God wanted them to seek His presence, not repeat a formula. Give yourself to fresh seeking, open to whatever new work the Spirit wants to do. David used a sling when everyone expected a spear. Keep sensitive to His leading.
Also, ask the Lord to search your heart. Prolonged trials can sometimes reveal areas where we have leaned on our own understanding or taken pride in our own strength, much like David’s census that numbered his troops. Humility positions us for deliverance. Remember the king who had done great evil, yet when he humbled himself, God granted him some deliverance and held back the full force of wrath. The patience and long-suffering of God strive with us far longer than we deserve. Do not give up. The same Lord who had wings of cherubim spread over the mercy seat sees your affliction and yearns to show mercy.
I find great encouragement in the psalms that rehearse what God has done. Recount His past faithfulness in your own life; let those memories become a weapon against despair. Even when freedom feels far off, sing His praises, put worship in your mouth. I long to see God move in revival and bring the kind of liberty that overflows to our children and grandchildren. I am praying for that in your life right now. Keep fasting and praying in secret, where your Father sees, and He will reward you openly.
The long night will give way. Stand firm, for the Lord your God will fight for you. Let the praise be on your lips even now, trusting that the One who let His own Son go into the deepest battle for your eternal freedom will not fail to bring you into a wide place.
