“He delivereth me from mine enemies: yea, thou liftest me up above those that rise up against me: thou hast delivered me from the violent man.” (Psalm 18: 48)
In our Focal Scripture, the psalmist declared the that Lord has delivered him from the violent man. The psalmist in this scripture was David whilst the violent man was Saul. In 1 Samuel 23 vs. 1-14, Saul plotted to come against David in Keilah, but rather than remain in Keilah, David and his men walked away. David was already a man of war; he was a gallant soldier; but one of the ways that God saved him was for him to avoid some battles.
Friend, as the first quarter of 2023 gradually comes to an end, glean some wisdom: choose your battles. Avoid some battles. Don’t be drawn into every fight that comes your way. Don’t be drawn into every confrontation that the enemy wants to drag you into. Don’t allow yourself to become a part of needless battles that God Himself does not want you to fight. Don’t get into battles just because you have what it takes to fight.
Notice that David had actually won a major victory in Keilah. He had defeated the Philistines who waged war in that place. God Himself had even commanded David to fight against the Philistines in Keilah; but in the same place, the same God would not have him fight a new battle. Guess what? The mere fact that God allowed you to fight a battle before does not mean He has authorized you to fight same battle again.
This year and beyond, discern between the battles that God wants you to fight and the ones He wants you to avoid. Discern between the times you need to speak up and the times you need to be silent. Discern between the times you need to fight and defeat those that are against you and the times you simply need to walk away from those that are against you. Discern between when to fight and when to flee from the enemy.
Don’t be counted amongst them that were consumed by battles that should have been avoided. Choose your battles wisely. Discern between the battles you should fight and the ones you need to flee from.
Psalm 35: 1 says: “Plead my cause, O LORD, with them that strive with me: fight against them that fight against me.”
Declare With Me: I discern between the battles I must fight and the battles I must flee from, in Jesus’ name!
Aphorism CITY 