“And everyone assembled here will know that the LORD rescues his people, but not with sword and spear. This is the LORD’s battle, and he will give you to us!” (1 Samuel 17:47.)

Sometimes as Christians we forget that we’re fighting a spiritual battle. A lot of the things that we’re facing in life have a spiritual element to them. Ephesians 6:12 reminds us, “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” And when David went out to face the giant Goliath in battle, he said, “Everyone assembled here will know that the Lord rescues his people, but not with sword and spear. This is the Lord’s battle, and he will give you to us!” (1 Samuel 17:47).

In a spiritual battle, we must use spiritual weapons. The Bible tells us, “We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments” (2 Corinthians 10:3–4.) What are spiritual weapons? Prayer is one of them. Have you ever noticed how big your problems can seem when you haven’t prayed? Worry overtakes you. It’s like a force all on its own. You can worry yourself into a frenzy. Here’s what the Bible says about worry: “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6–7).

When was the last time that you prayed about the problem you’re facing? Prayer puts things into perspective.The next time you’re tempted to worry, pray instead. Pray about that problem. Pray about that issue. And ask other people to pray with you. If you tolerate a Goliath in your life, he will take over your territory. For instance, maybe you think you’re going to go ahead and play around with a so-called little sin. You tell yourself that you know when to stop, that you won’t go too far. Then one day you have a bona fide giant in your life, and you want it to go away.

You don’t reason with a giant or yell at a giant. You kill him. That is what David did. The Bible tells us that “as Goliath moved closer to attack, David quickly ran out to meet him” (1 Samuel 17:48.) That’s the only way to take on a giant. And remember, the battle is the Lord’s. Sometimes God will allow us to hit rock bottom, where we don’t have any human solutions. If you’re in this situation, you may think, “This is too difficult. I have tried everything. The only thing I can do now is trust God.” That’s good. Then God will show you what He’s capable of. When you see God for who He is, you will see your giants for what they are. He is bigger than anyone or anything else.

Good morning and have a victorious day with Jesus of Nazareth!

– WILLY SEVERE