Powerless People
5. Jehoshaphat stood before the community of Judah and Jerusalem in front of the new courtyard at the Temple of the Lord.
6. He prayed, “O Lord, God of our ancestors, You alone are the God Who is in Heaven. You are the Ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against You.”
10. “And now see what the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir are doing. You would not let our ancestors invade those nations when Israel left Egypt, so they went around them and did not destroy them.”
11. “Now see how they reward us! For they have come to throw us out of Your land, which You gave us as an inheritance.”
12. “O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to You for help.”
2 Chronicles 20:5-6, 10-12
Low Fuel Warnings
We have all been in situations where the fuel gauge tells us that we are running low and need to take action. The question is, at what point do you take action to correct the problem? Procrastination would have us to attempt to delay the inevitable. Putting off a response could pose an even greater problem. Reacting wrongly to the situation could pose the threat of depending on solutions that will not work. Depending on our own solutions could also mean rejecting support.
To take our fuel gauge scenario further, there are a couple of things we must admit. First, you may own the vehicle but you don’t own the gas stations that supply fuel to your vehicle. Second, you have no control over where those gas stations are located. They don’t automatically “pop up” at the place where you need them. Third, your vehicle will stop when it runs out of fuel. Fourth, you could place yourself and others in jeopardy if you don’t respond to the “low fuel” warning. At that point, you will become powerless and your vehicle will become useless until you refuel. That is when you are powerless.
Let’s apply the fuel example to life. Everyone, whether young or old, rich or poor, will face life circumstances where you lack the resources you need to survive. It could be that you run out of money. It could be that you have run out of friends and feel that you are all alone. It could be that you have run out of enthusiasm and the will to try. People tell you to “just get over it” but you don’t have the energy to move. That describes some powerless circumstances that people find themselves in. To make matters worse, there seem to be no places available to get refueled. Banks are not issuing any loans because of your poor credit. People don’t want to be around you because they are busy or have problems of their own. Inside, you feel that your world is falling apart and there is nothing you can do about it. But believe it or not, there are some answers. God does not cease to be God just because you have a “low fuel” warning. You may be powerless but you serve an All Powerful God.
Facing a Helpless Situation
King Jehoshaphat and the kingdom of Judah faced a huge problem. The countries that surrounded them decided to band together and launch a military invasion. From the account of 2 Chronicles 20, this was a huge army consisting of the countries of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir. King Jehoshaphat was terrified and proclaimed a fast and asked the Lord for guidance. His swift actions provide some clear directions for us when we face life’s helpless circumstances.
As we walk through this Biblical example of helplessness, we should note several things that are critical when we face these battles. First, you need to know when to take the warning seriously. How do you know when you are under attack? Do you have some type of gauge that will tell you? A better question would be: how do you develop a spiritual “dash board” that can help you discern certain conditions and whether or not they pose a threat to you and those around you. So, lets come up with four basic things you will need on your spiritual dashboard. Second, you must have a platform that will help you move from human weakness to power in God. That will provide strength for your own life as well as others around you.
Jehoshaphat had a “Threat Indicator” that warned him that an enemy was invading his country. The Scripture says, “messengers” sent word to the King that his nation was being invaded by a vast army. These messengers gave the location of the army, the size of the threat, and what their intentions were. In today’s military terms, we would call this an advanced warning system. Do you have one? Do you think you need one? I believe God gives every child of God some type of advanced warning system or threat indicator to warn when trouble is approaching or when you are in dangerous territory. One threat indicator is your conscience. You can sense when things are not right or when danger is on the horizon. Have you ever heard the term “guilty conscience” or “bad conscience?” That is your warning system speaking to you when you do something wrong or when you are approaching danger.
Jehoshaphat also had something else on his dashboard that is critical. Prayer is critical support when you are going through helpless situations. The king not only prayed, but also called the entire nation into a time of prayer. 2 Chronicles 20:3-4, Jehoshaphat was terrified by this news and begged the Lord for guidance … he also ordered everyone in Judah to begin fasting … so the people from all the towns of Judah came to Jerusalem to seek the Lord’s help. In the case of fuel, your prayer gauge needs to always be near or on full. Why? You don’t know what will happen in life. Keep the prayer lines open with God at all times. Even if there is no threat, you still need God. Without God, you can do nothing. For Jehoshaphat, prayer was automatic.
What else did Jehoshaphat have on his spiritual dashboard? I believe there was a practice element. The passage does not say that Jehoshaphat simply prayed; it states that he begged the Lord for guidance. Later, when God confirmed that He had heard their prayer, Jehoshaphat acted on what God had told them. 2 Chronicles 20:16, God said to the people of Judah, tomorrow, march out against them. We must never conclude that if we pray, the Lord has relieved us of duty. Prayer does not work that way. When we have prayed, God prepares us to face our helplessness. Otherwise, how would we ever become strong in the Lord and in the Power of His Might? Prayer prepares us so that when our Practice Gauge is low, we then can bring it to full as a result of prayer. Don’t assume that if the Prayer Gauge is high that the Practice Gauge will stay empty. God is getting you ready for the battlefield, but please note that He is going with you.
Jehoshaphat was told that he and the Army of Judah would not need to fight but they would need to show up. 2 Chronicles 20:15, for the battle is not yours, but it is the Lord’s. Our response should be to act as a result of prayer. Throughout the Bible, God’s people have prayed in times of weakness but the prayers have made them powerful because of God’s presence. So when life happens, don’t just throw up your hands and claim “powerlessness” as an exemption. Get up and face your powerlessness in the Name of Jesus. Declare that it will not have dominion over your life.
Thus far, we have explored three gauges on our spiritual dashboard. There is the Threat Indicator, the Prayer Gauge, and the Practice Gauge. Any one of these indicators would point to the fact that you are powerless. The one that should always be full is the Prayer. Always be instant in prayer. Pray without ceasing because you never know when conditions will change and you will have to face powerful enemies.
Moving from Powerlessness to Praise
Here is Jehoshaphat’s assessment. See what the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir are doing … Now see how they reward us! For they have come to throw us out of Your land … “O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to You for help.
Once you have prayed and surrendered your helplessness to God, that prepares you for “next level thinking.” God will not allow a problem to enter your life and then leave you at the same spiritual level thinking and living. If you will notice, there are three things that happened. The king and nation faced a threat that left them powerless. Second, they prayed to God for direction. Third, they acted on their prayers and that put them into a powerful position over their enemies. This brings us to the fourth and final gauge on your spiritual dashboard: the Praise Gauge.
God confirmed that Judah would not need to fight the enemy but face them. That meant that God had already conquered the very thing that made them weak. In response, Jehoshaphat decided to rearrange the army and put the band and the praise team in front. 2 Chronicles 20:21-23. They began to sing, Give thanks to the Lord for His Mercy endures forever. When they began to sing, God ambushed the enemy and caused the Ammonites, the Moabites, and those from Mount Seir to fight against each other. As the people of Judah approached the battlefield all their enemies had destroyed themselves, just as the Lord had said. Praise is powerful because it acknowledges the Power of God at work in our lives. Praise confuses the enemy. Praise equips the saints as they rely on God’s strength. When praises go up, blessings come down. But also, when Praises go up, our weakness is conquered.
This lesson from 2 Chronicles teaches us that God is with us even in our moments of weakness. That weakness has come as an opportunity to build us up in the things of God and move us to next level living. Remember to have your spiritual dashboard settings on full. Be on the alert and be sober. That is your Threat Indicator. Be instant in Prayer for that is your Prayer Gauge. Remember to follow God and obey His Commands, for that is your Practice Gauge. Lastly, never be lacking in your Praise. That is your Praise Gauge. Your spiritual dashboard should be lit up as you move forward in faith and move from spiritual powerlessness to spiritual fulness.