<BrethrenVoice> 3 June 2002 RUN, WEARY SOLDER, RUN! Connie Giordano So many laborers of the Lord are weary these days. After undergoing great distress and heartache in their work for the Lord, they have become discouraged, with their minds feeling overwhelmed by the problems at hand. They are spiritually exhausted from preaching a Word from God that seemingly falls upon deaf ears. They are ready to give up. Are you one of those weary soldiers? Be encouraged this day - this message is for you! The Prophet Jeremiah felt very discouraged at times. The Word of the Lord came to him one day to stir him up and to awaken him to the task at hand. It is recorded in Jeremiah 12:5 that the Lord God inquired of him - "If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied thee, then how canst thou contend with horses?" In other words, God was pointing out to Jeremiah that the trials that he was presently experiencing were nothing in comparison to those that were ahead of him. If the smaller evil events were causing him to complain and feel overwhelmed, then how was he going to handle the evils to come which were far more terrible? Perhaps you have felt just like Jeremiah. You started out in the work of the Lord with great zeal and passion, but the devil and all of his evil cohorts threw everything in his book at you to stop you, slow you down, distract you, or cause you to doubt your calling from God. He sent financial troubles to stop you. When that didn't work, he sent infirmities and sicknesses of all kinds to attack you and your family. When he saw that you still could not be stopped, then he used one of his biggest weapons against you - rejection, criticism, and betrayal from the brethren as well as discouragement, loneliness, depression, and despair. Attack after attack came, leaving you weary and worn out. Slowly but surely, you began to pull back from the front lines of the battle. Now you find yourself hardly doing anything for the Lord. You have lost your zeal. The fire that once burned in your being is almost gone out. You have just about given up, convinced by the enemy that your days of ever being mightily used by God are over. Oh, Weary Christian, you have been called to run! It is not a time to sit down! Get Up! Get Up! Get Up! Get a hold of the Bible until the Bible gets a hold of you! God has not forsaken you! He has not left you! The gifts and the callings of God are still there ready to operate once again! This time they will burn with a greater zeal! You watch and see! You cannot afford to sit back and do nothing. While you sit back in discouragement, others are running in your place. Frighteningly, they are people whom God never called to the task. They are self-proclaimed individuals who are interested in making a name for themselves. They are interested in acquiring a following for themselves and not in leading others to Christ. They are interested in receiving the Glory and not in glorifying Christ. Jeremiah 23:21 tells us - "I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran.." So many today are running, yet God never sent them. They have taken on the responsibility and office of a prophet or spokesman for God, yet God never commissioned them. How do we know this? Jeremiah 23:22 says - "But if they had stood in My counsel, and had caused My people to hear My words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings." God never sends a preacher to soothe people in their sins. He never gives an individual a word that will give people an excuse to sin or to justify sin in their lives. He never leads anyone to promise peace to people who are walking after the evil imaginations of their own heart. This is a prophet of lies. This is an individual who ran, and was never sent by God. Jeremiah 23:26 - "...yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart." Jeremiah 23:30 - They "...steal My words every one from his neighbor." Jeremiah 23:32 - They "...cause My people to err by their lies, and by their lightness: yet I sent them not, nor commanded them..." You have "run with the footmen" and are weary. The days ahead are days of contending with the horses. If the footmen have made you weary, how will you handle the horses? If the seemingly small trials have worn you out, how will you stand the overwhelming floods of evil that are about to be unleashed on this earth before the Second Coming of Christ? As always, the Word of God has our answer. God is the source of our strength. He has made provision for us to run and not grow weary! He will enable us to not only outrun the footmen but the horses as well. Get your running shoes on for the Lord, Soldier, for God is not finished with you yet. The Best Is Yet To Come! Psalm 119:32 - "I will run the way of Thy commandments, when Thou shalt enlarge my heart." The Psalmist had total confidence in the Enabling Grace of God. He boldly declared - "I will run..." He was determined to not only keep the commandments of the Lord but to obey them with utmost liveliness, earnestness, enthusiasm, willingness, and zeal. He was determined to vigorously serve the Lord. What enabled him to do so? God had enlarged his heart. In other words, God made his heart free from all hindrances, obstructions, and distractions to doing what is right. He cleansed his heart of all impurity and iniquity which would cause him to be restricted in his movements for Him. He placed a burning fire in his heart which stimulated and animated him in his actions and filled him with holy desires to run for Him. Song of Solomon 1:4 - "Draw me, we will run after Thee.." John 6:44 - The Scriptures tell us that "No man can come to Me, except the Father which hath sent Me draw him..." We are enabled to draw closer to God through the gift of God's Wonderful Grace. By drawing nearer to the Lord, we then are empowered against all temptation to Sin from the world, the flesh, and the devil. As we draw closer to the Lord, we are given Life - His energizing and quickening power. This life makes us ready, eager, vigorous, and swift in accomplishing our tasks for Him. Proverbs 18:10 - "The name of the LORD is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe." O Christian soldier! We have the name of the LORD for our mighty refuge. Whenever we begin to feel weary, we can run into this "strong tower" and find rest. Whenever the enemy pursues us with a hot pursuit, we can run into this God-ordained sanctuary and find safety, relief, and refreshment for our souls. In the Mighty Name of Jesus, demons have to flee! Praise the Wonderful Name of Jesus! No other Name that I know! Isaiah 40:31 - "But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength...they shall run, and not be weary..." When we wait in the Awesome Presence of the Lord, He exchanges our weakness with His Strength. He revives and renews us. He restores that which is fallen down, crushed, or decayed within our beings. He increases our capacity for more of Him. He causes us to flourish once again. He anoints us with fresh oil so that we are burning and shining lamps. We are invigorated. We can run. We can run the way of God's commandments for long distances and never grow weary. Psalm 18:29 - "For by Thee I have run through a troop..." The most important words in this verse are "For by Thee..." There is no other way that we are able to "run through a troop." God empowers us to break through the hosts and armies of our enemies. He empowers us to win an outstanding victory over the adversary. He empowers us to take back all that the devil stole from us. Through Him, we are able to rush violently into the enemy's camp and secure the victory that is ours. Proverbs 4:12 - "...when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble." In the previous verse, King Solomon spoke of the "way of wisdom." This way is plain and clear. It is free from all obstructions and obstacles. Therefore, we are able to run and never be in danger of stumbling. Proverbs 4:5-7 - How important it is that we seek God for Wisdom as Solomon encouraged us to do so - "Get Wisdom...Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom..." Wisdom is God's instruction to us as found in His Holy Word. At no time in our walk with the Lord can we ever lay aside our Bibles. We must be diligent seekers of this Great Wisdom. Our acquired knowledge of God's Will and Ways will strengthen us, make us strong, and cause us to run without ever stumbling or falling. Hebrews 12:1 - "...run with patience the race that is set before us." We are called to run in a race. There is a "cloud of witnesses" who have gone before us who have made it to the finishing line. They overcame every trouble, obstacle, hindrance, distraction, and discouragement sent by the devil. With a Holy Perseverance burning in our souls, we, too, can make it to the end without fainting or falling out of line. How will we be able to accomplish this great task? Hebrews 12:2 gives us our answer - "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith..." We are called to run the way of God's commandments. We are called to run through a troop. We are called to run the race set before us with patience. How are we going to do this? God will enlarge our hearts. By His Grace, He will draw us closer to Himself, where we will wait in His Mighty Presence and exchange our weakness for His strength. We have His Glorious Name as a refuge in times when we are weary or in dire straits. He is our Strength and our Power. We can confess that "For by Thee" we are enabled to run for Him and overcome the enemy of our souls. O weary Christian! Get up! God has promised you His Mighty Strength. Run for God! Run like you have never run before! Outrun all those whom God had never sent and are running with their own word. Don't let the devil hold you back any longer! God is counting on you! The Body of Christ needs you! Run! Run! Run! Run through the enemy's troop. Run with patience. Keep your eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of your Faith. You won't grow weary if you do. God is counting on you and so are we. May God Bless His Word. Connie ____________________________________________________________________ ["EXAMINE YOURSELVES WHETHER YOU ARE IN FAITH." (2 Cor 13:5)] [BrethrenVoice facilitates free flow of Christian information towards establishing the saved in the sustaining grace and leading the unsaved to the saving grace.] TO GOD BE THE GLORY! 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