Vertical Worship – “Bound For Glory” (Devotional)

Rejoice in the victory – Ephesians 6:16  

Popularity of navigation apps highlights our cultureΓÇÖs need to know their destinations.  Christians are heading for heaven.  Part of believing in Christ–his life, death and resurrection–includes heaven.  Here, separation from God (sin) becomes impossible. This IS the victory: living with God who lovingly created each one of us for His purpose.

Blocking the way of victory is the war.  War for the Christian is a slew of circumstances that get in the way of seeing the victory.  These circumstances make it feel like God is very far away.  Pain, hurt, and shame often feel like the past, present and future. Strategy to obtain triumph over these adversaries is unclear.  

Faith is the key:

For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the worldΓÇöour faith.

1 John 5:4

Rejoice in the Victory

How then is it possible to bridge this place of confusion to get to faith? After all, pain is real, even if it is a circumstance.

• Take up the shield of faith.
  • Do something in faith: sing. 2 Chronicles describes King Jehoshaphat and his unusual way of fighting a battle. He faced three armies. He implores the Lord to help.  Then asks the people to sing. In fact specifically to sing praises of thanksgiving.  Unconventionally, they did it with the promise from the Lord that the battle did not belong to them, but to God. 

• Extinguish the arrows before they can damage.
  • They sang. They did not fight, instead they sang thanks to the Lord.

• Believe the victory is the LordΓÇÖs.  

As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated.

2 Chronicles 20:22

This is the future the Lord has planned for his children: rejoicing in the victory that He brings.  

Sing before the battle.  Have faith the victory is in grasp, the Lord is fighting for you and has won.  This is your destination.

Today, how will you rejoice in the victory He has promised for your circumstance? Your burdens are not your future.