For this week’s Worship Wednesday, Jennifer shares with us how God defends us in every hard thing we face in this life.

God Defends Us

Why am I here? 

So many people rave about this duty station or that one. I wonder why… Why that place? Why not another place? God has sent me to some strange duty stations. Places where I thought I would thrive and others where I thought I would barely survive. Each location taught me something, usually, a hard lesson. Whether it was beautiful mountains, oceanside, or deserts, they all convinced me of one truth, God was with me.

Some places are not very desirable. That duty station people tell you to avoid at all costs! In the Army, it is the Mojave desert and in the Air Force it is in Nebraska. I have been stationed at the “horrible places” and the “wonderful–you will love it–places,” but each time orders arrived, I wasn’t ready to go.  

In the end, each place truly showed me how spiritual battles wage all around us. After leaving all that I love–friends, church, being near family, I arrive exhausted and not ready to continue fighting another spiritual battle. I wanted to curl up in a corner and never go outside again. Yet, God doesn’t want me to give up. 

God’s Purpose in Our Pain

Listening to the song Defender stirred up a lot of feelings. Feelings of being hated, attacked, and standing alone. It also challenged me to remember God is my defender, going before me to new places. I know in my heart, I am not alone. I have true friends who have stood with me through the attacks. However, Satan loves to make me think I am alone. 

At the end of my time at each place, I know I will miss all my friends. God continues to provide me with godly prayer warriors and fierce defenders in the flesh. I know that as I move to another place the spiritual battles will continue yet I have my warriors with me.

This song encourages me that God is always with me. He is my defender. When I make mistakes, God is my defender. When people attack me, God is my defender. He brings me new friends to surround me in each and every new place.

I admit that I am not perfect, I make mistakes. Sometimes I make so many it is impossible to count them. After admitting my mistakes, my friends rally around me to remind me that they still love me and forgive me. God forgives me and loves me and his mercy flows over me.  

For where two or three gather in my name I am with them.

Matthew 18:20 NIV

 

Gather your friends around you when you are attacked. God is with you. His plans are different than my plans and his way is so much better than I can ever imagine. Even when he sends me to far-away places.

When I am in the midst of the trials and I’m tempted to wonder where God is. This song reminds me God is still with me. God’s way is always the best way. His plans are always the best. His ways are true and they bring me back to Him. During my hard times, His love envelopes me. He goes before me and defends me.

God’s love defends me.

When you are feeling overwhelmed, turn up this song and remember that God defends you. He has already won the war. If you are being attacked, God defends you. When you get orders, God is with you. God will go before you and he wins your battles for you before you even unpack your household goods. 

Remember that no matter how many times you mess up, God restores your faith and hope. God used hard situations and duty stations to teach me that He is everywhere with me. In the middle of a desert, He is with me. Overseas He is with me. In a place many people call the “Best Hometown,” God is with me. When I am in nightmare traffic, he is with me. He doesn’t lose me. He never forgets where I am and he knows where my family is going before the military does.

God doesn’t lose me. God doesn’t lose you.

Immanuel (Matthew 1:23) is with you and doesn’t leave you. You are not alone wherever the military sends you. I am not alone. God doesn’t leave me nor will He ever leave me. He will keep his promises forever.

For a reminder of how God defends us, listen to Defender by Francesca Battistelli ft. Steffany Gretzinger.

by Jennifer Wake