Fighting For You

Top of the morning friends! I’m pumped to be able to share another devotion this fine day! This time, it’s a new song from Tenth Avenue North titled ‘Fighting For You’. It’s from their recent album ‘Followers’ and was released only a few months ago. I would encourage you to have a listen if you haven’t already. As my friends and I are in the middle of our final year 12 exams at the moment, I really felt like this song would be fitting. We must always remember Jesus is fighting for us, even during exams! What’s more, I have been listening to it a lot lately. Let’s get to today’s devotion!

I see the tears on your face, I watch your friends walk away, oh, I’ve been there too, I’ve been there too, I see the nights you can’t sleep, I hear your broken heart beat, well, I’ve felt that too, yeah, I’ve felt that too…”

The way this song is written is very unique. It is from God’s perspective, as if he is looking at our situation based on how he sees it. Jesus sees our struggles and heartbreaks and he knows every little difficulty we face. He knows every tear that runs down our cheek and every minute we lie in bed, not being able to sleep because of things on our mind. Jesus empathises with every hardship we face because he went through the agonising pain of death on a cross for us. Jesus prayed to His Father to ask if it could be taken from Him but despite how petrified He was, Jesus faced the punishment he didn’t deserve because of how much he loves us. Every time we face pain in our life, Jesus knows what we are facing because He came to earth as a man and experienced all that we face on a daily basis; temptation, sadness and even anger when He saw how the temple was being used in a way that wasn’t honouring to God. It is a great comfort to know that Our Father in Heaven not only sees what we go through but that He also understands it, because He has been there too.

Hebrews 4:15- “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin”.

Jesus sacrificed himself in our place, the place we should have been in, so that the gap that sin creates between us and God can be bridged. If we have come to trust in Jesus as Our Lord and saviour, he promises never to forsake us. He is always with us, fighting for us- even when we think we are doing things on our own, He is there.

“Start walking with your head held high, the future is bright, heaven’s gates are open wide, every trouble that you ever walk through, peace, my child, I am, I am fighting for you, you I am fighting for you…”

This is the chorus and undoubtedly my favourite part of the song. It is such a strong and comforting message that really gave me peace when I was listening to this song yesterday. It is such a joy that we can walk in confidence, with our head held high, not worrying about the dangers that surround us because we know that God is right there with us, fighting for us so that we don’t have to! Because of our faith in what Jesus has done, we are called Children of God and our future is in eternity with Him! Heaven’s gates are wide open for all those who believe and the Lord himself will one day welcome us home with open arms! This encourages us to rise above the challenges in this life, because we know we have the hope of eternity to look forward to, which means that all we face in this life is temporary. One verse I always remember is this one from Romans 8:18-  “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us”. Although we face hardship now, it will all fade away in the glory of eternity with the Lord!

Deuteronomy 31:6- “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you”.

The second part of the chorus is the most comforting for me. It is a both a promise and a reminder that EVERY trouble we ever walk through, God is right beside us. In these times, God will give us His peace- His peace which transcends all understanding to help us face the situation. We have no reason to worry ourselves because we know fully that God is fighting our battles. If we give our struggles and worries to Him, we should not try and take them back again by worrying about them. I know that can be hard to do, I often do that myself but I am always reminded by my parents to give it to God and leave it to him. It is at those times when we struggle to give God full control that, through His Holy Spirit He gives us the peace that we need to get through the situation and a constant reminder that He is control.

I can’t tell you how many times I have asked God for a sense of comfort and peace and how many times I have experience it for myself. He will always comfort us when we ask Him to. Even yesterday, going into my first WACE exam, I was praying as I walked through the door that I  would know God’s peace and presence and I just felt a sense of comfort wash over me. At the same time, I was seeing everyone else around me stress out and I really wished they could have known the same peace as I was experiencing. You see, we have absolutely no reason to concern ourselves any longer when we have given our worries and concerns to God because they are no longer in our hands, but His. God wants us to hand everything that is on our hearts over to Him, even though He already knows us inside out. If he is the Lord of our lives, why should we want to hold anything back from Him?

(second part of Leviticus 26:13)-“I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high”.

Philippians 4:7- “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus”.

“I gave up my last breath, so you can breathe again, I died for you, I died for you”

These lyrics are from the verse just before the second chorus, but I feel they are really great lyrics to finish on. Jesus payed the perfect sacrifice so that we don’t have to pay the penalty of death for our sins. It is because of his amazing grace that we don’t have to face the punishment we righty deserve. If Jesus gave his life for us, isn’t that that more than enough to know that He loves us?  I believe it and if He was prepared to give His life, how much more is Jesus prepared to fight our battles for us! He fought our greatest battle of all, sin, and it was defeated once and for all on the cross. Our saviour has died for us, so that we can live. He wants us to have life to the full and not to be weighed down by the struggles and trials this world throws at us. If we spend all our effort and time trying to wade through the difficulties of life, we are distracted from our true purpose of living our lives for Jesus. We have been given the free gift of life, eternal life. We will face difficulties and challenges each day, but we must not let them defeat us. We must give them to Jesus who promises to fight them for us. We must not allow ourselves to be weighted down by these things, whether it be exams or other difficulties, Jesus defeated our sin on the cross and He will fight and defeat all that tries to stand against us.

Chronicles 20:17- “You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you”.

We never have to be afraid, no matter the situation we face. It is often easy to try and deal with these circumstances on our own. But we can’t do it on our own, God is the only one who can and will fight our battles for us. Whatever you are facing right now, whether it be exams, pressure at work or whatever else may be facing, commit it to the Lord’s care and he will give you the peace, comfort and assurance that goes with knowing it is all in His control. He is always on our side and no one can be against us if He is for us! Always remember to trust in the Lord first and not in ourselves. We may feel defeated, but God can never be defeated. He won over our sin on the cross- nothing is too great for our God! God will always be with us, in the good times and the bad times. We need to remember to look to Him and commit our lives to His care each day, because He is always fighting for us!

Heavenly Father, thank you we do not have to face anything on our own, you are always right there with us, helping us to get through and fighting for us. May we never hesitate to give our struggles and hardships to you because you care for us and love us so much more than we will ever know. I pray we can know your power and your peace in these times and may we never forget that you are in control of whatever happens. Thank you for being with us Lord and for giving us victory over the struggles of this life. In Jesus’ mighty name we pray, Amen.

God Bless you all,

Josh Clarke- The Faith Filled Friends