Destiny - It is NOW!

2 Samuel 23:9-12:

9 Next to him was Eleazar son of Dodai the Ahohite. As one of the three mighty men, he was with David when they taunted the Philistines gathered at Pas Dammim [e] for battle. Then the men of Israel retreated, 10 but he stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The LORD brought about a great victory that day. The troops returned to Eleazar, but only to strip the dead.

11 Next to him was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite. When the Philistines banded together at a place where there was a field full of lentils, Israel's troops fled from them. 12 But Shammah took his stand in the middle of the field. He defended it and struck the Philistines down, and the LORD brought about a great victory.


God has given each one of us a destiny.

The problem is, sometimes it is very hard to see what it is, as we often relate it to something in the future. "One day...I will find my destiny..."

I have discovered more and more that the destiny God has given us relates not only to the future, but also to NOW, and in fact relates very much to our PAST.

The key question is not, 'what is our destiny?' It is rather, 'what have I done with my destiny', or 'what am I doing with my destiny'?

Sounds confusing?

In the above passage from 2 Samuel 23, there were two men who decisively stood their ground and fought, and in the end "The LORD brought about a great victory". (Verses 10,12). That last bit was repeated twice, just in case we missed it.

There are two kinds of Christians: those who take a stand on a God-appointed ground, and those that ran and lost ground.

The Bible is littered with examples of men and women who took a stand on God-appointed ground and were able to then witness how the "The LORD brought about a great victory".

Moses stood his ground and raised his hands heavewards, fighting the spiritual battle with the Amalekites while Joshua fought the physical battle (Ex 17) and as a result, witnessed how "The LORD brought about a great victory".

Joshua and Caleb stood their ground and believed God that victory was theirs and Canaan belonged to them, in the midst of fierce internal opposition from their own people. They held onto what they believed was their God-given and God-appointed ground, entered Canaan, conquered cities after cities and each time witnessed how "The LORD brought about a great victory".

David stood his ground before the giant Goliath when the army of Isarel were hiding in fear. David believed that victory belonged to Israel...it was their God-given and God-appointed ground, and that if the battle was lost, it would not be because God had not given it but because the people simply gave up and ran away. So he harnessed his sling and took his shot and all of Israel witnessed how "The LORD brought about a great victory".

And it goes on and on.

But the pattern is clear.

When God has given you a God-appointed ground and you are facing intense opposition from the enemy, be it a piece of land, or a battle over something important to you that you know God has given to you, or the lives of people around you, or the salvation of those close to you, or a ministry God has annointed you etc etc...

What will you do?

Run and lose ground...or stand your ground, believing that because it is God-appointed ground that if you do your part, He will do His and one day you will be able to look back and see how "The LORD brought about a great victory"?

It is sobering to know that eventually, the greatest regret I may have in life as a believer, is not what I have done but what I failed to do as a result of failing to believe in God.

And today if God is calling you and I to repentance, it not to merely to repent of things we have done, but because we are missing our birthrights and our God-appointed grounds. He is calling us to repent of LOSS, of what can be, and what should be and to acknowledge that we lost ground when we should have taken our stand.

What can be, what should be.

I have learned that there are two ways of repentance. One method is the popular one, exemplified by the statement, "We have sinned. Let's repent. Here's a list. This is a sure way to generate guilt and bring about a sense of failure.

Another way is to tell God: 'We are sorry. We lost ground. We lost the birthright that's ours because we fail to believe. We are sorry, we repent.'

I am not saying that it is not important to repent of the sins we have obviously committed against God and that it is not important to even have a list if necessary.

But repentance would not be lasting and life-changing if all we focus on is what we have done and there isn't a clear goal of what we have lost.

We have lost what would otherwise been ours for the taking. The Promised Land. The salvation of those around us. The enlarging of God's kingdom. The victories that are ours in Christ.

The cell could have moved from the exploration stage to the multiplication stage if we had believed and not give up when there were so many problems.

My friends could have come to know Christ or be brought closer to Him if I had not allowed unbelief to set in and decided it was impossible and too difficult and gave up, but instead have faith that because God brought them into my life and made them my responsible 'oikos' He will give me the victory.

The church could have grown two folds, six folds, a hundred folds if we had not grown tired and disillusioned and gave up to simply maintain a status quo and keep the programmes going, but instead pursue the vision God has given us to take the land.

The community could have been impacted if we had believed the land we live in is God's appointed ground. The 5000 could have been fed if we have believed they are God's gift to us instead of rationalising that we do not have enough to even feed 50.

What is your God-appointed ground?

Your ministry? Your career? Your cell? Your family?

Was there a dream that God gave to you once but sadly you may have lost ground and given it away when there were opposition and obstacles, believing erroneously that if it was God's appointed ground then He should have made it smooth but all He had wanted was for us to stand our ground, believe Him and like Eleazar, fight until our hands "grew tired and froze to the sword" so that we would be able to look back and see how "The LORD brought about a great victory"?

Today, I have been convicted again to repent. Repent of lost ground, not only for what I have done but what I should have done. I have been reminded of the ground I have lost, and have been reminded to once again stand my ground and fight on in the midst of oppposition so that I will see the Lord's victory.

What do you need to repent of?

Eleazor and Shammah were shining examples of mighty men who stood their ground and fought with all their might, believing where they stood and the battles they fought despite fierce opposition were God's appointed ground for them. But today we have someone greater than Eleazor and Shammah, Jesus Christ, and He has taken a stand on Calvary. This is a picture of God-given victory and it points to the greatest of all victories, when Jesus Christ on the Mount of Calvary took His stand on God-appointed ground and achieved victory.

If we are ever in doubt that victory is our birthright and that God's dreams for our lives in impacting the lives of those around us and the world are our God-appointed grounds, then let us go back to what happened at Calvary. The very act of Redemption calls us to understand our birthrights, receive the grace of God and the glory of God.

Destiny - It is NOW.