“But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” I Samuel 30:6
In 1Samuel 30:1-19, we read that David and his men arrived home to their hometown of Ziklag only to find the Amalekite army had burned down the city and kidnapped all their families. They were all in such despair, even David’s men were talking about stoning him. At that point, David turned to God and the Bible says he strengthened himself in the Lord. This was a shift in the situation! David inquired of the Lord on what to do and the Lord instructed him to go rescue everyone taken! And they did. Nothing was lost.
One recent morning I was feeling emotionally weighed down by many situations I’d been praying for. I couldn’t kick the feeling of despair. The Lord brought this verse to my mind… “But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” I began asking the Lord how David did this. I felt He began to teach me how we, like David, can strengthen ourselves in the Lord.
Very clearly Holy Spirit said, “Take your eyes off the problem and Fix your eyes on JESUS.“
“We look away from the natural realm and we focus our attention and expectation onto Jesus who birthed faith within us and who leads us forward into faith’s perfection. His example is this: Because his heart was focused on the joy of knowing that you would be his, he endured the agony of the cross and conquered its humiliation, and now sits exalted at the right hand of the throne of God!”
Hebrews 12:2 TPT
To make sure I understood, I asked Him: “Practically, how can we fix our eyes on you, Lord?”
He said, Remember.
- Remember the Lord’s GOODNESS and WHO He is! Begin to recall all the kindness and goodness of the Lord. Tell him how thankful you are for His love, His blessing, His forgiveness, His mercy, His life laid down for you, His tenderness when He speaks to you as His Beloved, His good plans for your future, etc.
- Remember your HISTORY with God! Remember all the times He provided and sent His love through songs, people, red birds, love notes through sunsets, butterflies, and even miracles of all kinds! Recall what He has done in your life!
- Remember the SCRIPTURE and speak it out over yourself! Jesus is the Word. (John1:1) Remember the truth will set you free. (John 8:32). Come into agreement with the truth from the word of God and the lies, darkness, and despair will flee from a person who knows the truth about themselves and fixes their eyes on the King of their heart.
He asked me, “Where does the spiritual battle take place?” I knew He was directing me to pay attention to my thoughts. The battle is in our mind, but we can be victorious when we take our thoughts captive and not let them run over us.
“We are destroying arguments and all arrogance raised against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” 2 Corinthians 10:5 NASB2020
Scriptures to speak over yourself:
- “I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you and continued My faithfulness to you. [Deut 7:8]” Jeremiah 31:3 AMP
- “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39 NLT
- “Therefore there is now no condemnation [no guilty verdict, no punishment] for those who are in Christ Jesus [who believe in Him as personal Lord and Savior]. [John 3:18]” Romans 8:1 AMP
- “We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world. Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love.” 1 John 4:16-18 NLT
- “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” II Timothy 1:7 NKJV
- “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” I John 1:9 NKJV
- “Our faith in Jesus transfers God’s righteousness to us and he now declares us flawless in his eyes. This means we can now enjoy true and lasting peace with God, all because of what our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, has done for us.” Romans 5:1 TPT
- “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,” Ephesians 3:20 NKJV
- “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you! Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock.” Isaiah 26:3-4 NLT
- “I repeat, be strong and brave! Do not yield to fear nor be discouraged, for I am Yahweh your God, and I will be with you wherever you go!”” Joshua 1:9 TPT
- “Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” Luke 10:19 NKJV
- (Jesus said) “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.”” Matthew 17:20 NLT
- “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you.” Isaiah 43:1-2 NKJV
- “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-13 NKJV
- “For God is satisfied to have all his fullness dwelling in Christ. And by the blood of his cross, everything in heaven and earth is brought back to himself—back to its original intent, restored to innocence again! Even though you were once distant from him, living in the shadows of your evil thoughts and actions, he reconnected you back to himself. He released his supernatural peace to you through the sacrifice of his own body as the sin-payment on your behalf so that you would dwell in his presence. And now there is nothing between you and Father God, for he sees you as holy, flawless, and restored, if indeed you continue to advance in faith, assured of a firm foundation to grow upon. Never be shaken from the hope of the gospel you have believed in…” Colossians 1:19-23 TPT
How about you? Do you ever feel down, weary, or even an emotional heaviness because of so much warfare in the spirit going on around you? Strengthen yourself in the Lord your God. Ask Holy Spirit to speak to you about who you are to HIM. Gaze at King Jesus and you will find He’s already gazing at you with eyes of love.♥️