Day Twelve: Victory In the Middle of Ordinary

One time the Philistines gathered at Lehi and attacked the Israelites in a field full of lentils.

The Israelite army fled, but Shammah held his ground in the middle of the field and beat back the Philistines. So the Lord brought about a great victory.

2 Sam. 23:11-12, NLT

Have you ever said any of the following?

• * I tend to feel closest to God in times of crisis.
• * It’s the day to day stuff that trips me up.
• * Most of our fights are over ridiculous, petty things.
• * Normal life bores me. 

I think we’ve all said, or thought, most of these things. We tend to prepare for action when we can see the enemy coming to attack our city. However, one of Satan’s favorite tricks is to sneak up on us in the field when we’re not expecting it. In otherwise ordinary moments – when we’re getting ready for church, dropping the kids off at school, on lunch break, going for a walk in the neighborhood, or checking Facebook - suddenly we’re under attack and don’t know how to respond. Others are running for cover. Will you run, or will you stay and fight?

Shammah was willing to fight for a field of lentils. He did his job and God brought the victory. A popular crop today, lentils are hardy, inexpensive, nutritious, high in fiber, and can be served a number of ways. Because they are common, many might view them as ordinary. Not important enough to defend. That’s where they’re wrong.

It’s the basic, ordinary things of life that are most worth defending – things like honesty, faithfulness, truth, rest, giving, serving. These are the things that will last, that nourish and sustain us. They can be served up a variety of delicious ways to bless and strengthen others.       When we take a stand for the ordinary, we build muscle for the bigger battles that threaten to crumble our faith. How do we prepare for these unexpected skirmishes? By filling up daily from the Word of God and meditating on those truths as we go about the day. Then when the enemy sneaks up on us, we can use the weapons we already have at hand. If we do our job, God will bring the victory.