Exodus 17: 8 – 9 The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.”

The staff Moses was referring to is the staff described in Exodus 4:1 – 17, when the Lord was preparing to send him to the elders of Israel and then on to Pharaoh to demand release of the Israelites from bondage. God had transformed Moses’ ordinary shepherd staff into a secret weapon for miracles. “What is in your hand?”  Moses responded: “A staff”. The Lord ordered him to throw it down. It turned into a snake and Moses ran from it. But the Lord ordered him to pick it up by the tail and as he did it became a staff again.

You are a soldier in the Lord’s army so each day there will be challenges and battles to fight. Sometimes the enemy will be readily visible and identifiable as the Amalekites were to Moses and his army. At other times it may be plots and schemes of others over which you have no control. Sometimes you will be caught off-guard when the enemy is temptation, lust, greed, pride, envy, malice – the kind of things that sneak upon you and you don’t realize that they are just as capable of ruining your life and your walk with God.

The Lord does not expect us to fight battles without him any more than he expected Moses or Joshua to do so. God had ordained defeat for the Amalekites. (Read Exodus 17:13 – 14 and Deuteronomy 25: 17 – 19, 1 Samuel 15:1-3). Like Moses and Joshua we have to depend on God who knows the outcome he has purposed in each of our battles.

            “It is a principle in Scripture that I fight battles for my people. They never fight alone. It is my desire that they look to me, lean on me for the help they need in every circumstance. Often they do not comprehend how far reaching the opposition of the enemy is. It is never just a frontal attack – he comes from all sides and with many weapons. So it is pointless for you to fight alone. Commit the battle to me and I will fight for you.”