You Need a Battle Song

I have let this topic steep too long. And now it has turned into this impossible thing to explain. And it's not. It's simple.

Before you get into this mini sermon I will tell you, I am talking about a song that got stuck in my head and why it did. The song is 'I Will Sing of the Goodness of God' by Jenn Johnson-Bethel Music. I tried to link it but it won't. I guess its up to you to find it if you want to. 

I was recently awestruck by God in 2 Chronicles chapter 20. Because it gave me hope for an impossible situation of my own. And the parallels for my own life were...In-My-Face-Real. In other words...the parallels were obvious to me.

I urge you to read it for yourself. And I hesitate to summarize it because the facts and the lesson get all jumbled in my head. I will attempt to briefly mention the things that grabbed my attention and name the way it resonates with me.

Verses 2-4 NIV 

Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, "A vast army is coming against you from Edom". Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the Lord and proclaimed a fast for all Judah. The people of Judah came together to seek help from the Lord; indeed, they  came from every town in Judah to seek Him.

Jehoshaphat was already serving God wholeheartedly when He received this news. He had already turned the people back to God after a succession of mostly bad kings.  

I like his response to the bad news. And his resolve. And his turn to worship with these words. verses 6-12

Verses 13-19 the Spirit of the Lord moved and spoke through a guy named, Jahaziel. The words he spoke brought courage and hope, not fear and turmoil. "Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army, for the battle is not yours, but God's. Tomorrow march down against them.....You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you....Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow and the Lord will be with you."

Again they all fell to the ground worshiping God. Then some of then stood up and praised God with a very loud voice. They immediately acted in obedience. They started the plan early the next morning. Maybe they slept and were well rested, maybe they praised God all night. It doesn't say.

They didn't sit and stew and question the timing and method or try to logistic out all the potential problems. They left early in the morning for the Desert of Tekoa. As they went, Jehoshaphat encouraged them with this wisdom: "Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld." 

After consulting with the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord and to praise Him for the splendor of His holiness as they went out at the head of the army saying, "Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever!"  As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the enemy and they were defeated.

In previous chapters this is called a battle cry. I went back and did a search of this on Google. Essentially, in the Bible, the battle cry was a chant that proclaimed "The Battle is the Lord's!" The people of God used this at every battle God won for them. I went weak in the knees when I did this study, for I had a thing in front of me that seemed like a battle too big for me.

The battle cry or song starts with praise. It is a chant in your head on repeat...a song or a bible verse... At every turn, every obstacle, debate or argument, mind game or invitation to battle in your own strength...this song or phrase plays on repeat in your mind. eventually it gets down into your heart and soul and you find strength to stay engaged and stedfast on God who is  fighting the battle for you through this song of victory.

While I can't name specifically my battle and give you the details, I am certain this is a truth for all of us at any particular stage in our lives. We all have battles. We all have days of knowing we are in a battle yet we feel out of strength to stay engaged and let it serve its purpose. We wonder: What is the purpose of this thing? and... How will this ever glorify God? Especially as I remain defeated?

You need a battle song. I found mine in Wyoming around a little buffet table, in a quaint little kitchen of an Air B and B my sisters and I rented for a couple days in Oct. My niece, Jeannie, who came with her mom, had been humming it and even singing phrases of the song off and on since we had picked them up at the airport.

I recognized the tune but had never listened to the lyrics very well. It was one of those bothersome songs that seemed too difficult to sing along with because of the timing and wording. It didn't flow easily into my head. It made me feel clumsy to sing it. It still does.

But that morning sitting around the kitchen table with my sisters, someone pulled up the lyrics on their phone and we were off. The words got me. Because it was so true that no matter what we had all been through as sisters in our individual lives; we were able to sing of the goodness of God.

I went home and forgot all about the song. Mostly. Now and then the chorus would run through my mind. It was the morning that I read the passage in 2 Chronicles that the phrases and words kept playing on repeat in my heart and soul. And I couldn't shake it.

It followed me into the weekend as we went to a marriage seminar that honestly, I was kind of dreading. This song was what got me through the weekend. I was able to walk in obedience to trust God to fight and battle for me. God kept my mouth closed when I needed to and God help me to talk when I needed to. God kept me focused on Him and His goodness through all the hard work of examining our marriage again. It feels shameful to me that marriage isn't easy for me; that it feels like mostly hard work; Yet, I clearly saw and was able to rejoice in God's love to me in my marriage as the weekend went along.

It has been the goodness of God that has helped me see His faithfulness through my emotionally challenged personage. It is the goodness of God that has given me His wisdom and peace to merge together my Homing Pigeon personality to my husband's Restless Wandering one. It is the goodness of God that has helped me understand and have grace for this man whom I can never keep up with or change to be calmer and less hurried through life. The battle is not mine to fight... 

Phrases from my song: I will sing of the goodness of God....All my life YOU have been faithful...All my life YOU have been so so good...

I have known praise to be the way through a difficult thing. Probably because it works much like the battle cry. It says, "I don't know how, but I trust YOU, God, to fight this battle for me...YOU, God, do the moving, shaking, and even the-what-looks-like-nothing-is-happening-stuff, and I'm gonna be over here praising and singing my battle song, Amen".