They kneel down, they bring forth their young, they get rid of their labor pains. Job 39:3.
Do not throw away your confidence, for you have need of endurance so that when you have done the Will of God, you may receive what was promised. Hebrews 10:35-36.
Now when Daniel knew that the document was signed, he entered his house (now in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God, as he had been doing previously. Daniel 6:10.
Today your LORD (יהוה) God says:
What do you do when you have the promise from My Word, and it is “yes” to you in Christ Jesus, but your situation only gets worse? It is time you stopped behaving like those who have no hope and are without Me in the world so that you will not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Hebrews 6:11. When the illness, pain, circumstances, storm, trial—just seem to defy you and increase in intensity, in fact, you are like a woman in the pains of childbirth. The devil sees you are about to birth your dreams and, like you see in the book of Revelation, “the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth, he might devour her child.” Revelation 12:4. So what do you do?
They kneel down, they bring forth their young, they get rid of their labor pains. Job 39:3. You have to fight the battle on your knees in prayer.
“Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations on your behalf, for they are your glory. For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom the whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 3:13-21.
Tribulation? Trials? Paul bowed down on his knees and prayed for strength in the inner man by My Spirit and the indwelling presence of Christ, building yourself up in My love until you are filled with My life and the impossible, beyond all you can ask or think, comes to pass. You give birth to the dream and the labor pains are over. “But all these things (trials, tribulations) are merely the beginning of birth pangs.” Mark 13:8. “Whenever a woman is in labor, she has pain, because her hour has come; but when she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy that a child has been born into the world. Therefore you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.” John 16:21-22.
“Shall I bring to the point of birth and not give delivery?” says the LORD. “Or shall I who gives delivery shut the womb?” says your God. Isaiah 66:9.
Do not give up too quickly. “Do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. For yet in a very little while, He who is coming will come, and will not delay. But My righteous one shall live by faith; and if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him. But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul.” Hebrews 10:35-39.
Don’t let the devil steal your dreams because he has thrown up a dust storm. Stand in faith and when the dust settles, you will still be standing and he will be under your feet. “Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.” 1 Corinthians 16:3.
This is the Year of Triumph, but to have a triumph there will be a fight. This will be the time of the greatest challenge of your life. But you can get over the greatest challenge with the Greatest One. With My help you leap over a wall. It is I who light your lamp and dispel the darkness around you. Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. Christ in you, your hope of glory. And if you believe in My Son, My Spirit dwells in you to quicken and give life to your mortal body. The power is in you that heals all. Resurrection power resides in you. Let it loose to raise you out of the pit you have sunk into in your storm.
What did Daniel do when he came against the decree that could put him to death? “Now when Daniel knew that the document was signed, he entered his house (now in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God, as he had been doing previously.” Daniel 6:10. He went to his knees. And though they threw him in a pit of hungry lions, I sent My angel to hold their mouths shut the whole time Daniel was in there. Stand your ground. Fight on your knees but not with tears and begging, oh no, he did the battle on his knees giving thanks. “Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving.” Colossians 4:2.
You overcome the greatest challenge of your life with the Greatest One just as He overcame. “He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” Revelation 3:21. “In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33.
So how do you overcome when nothing seems to be happening that fulfills My promise but instead is only getting worse? Go to My Word and find out.
Do you recall that I promised the enslaved Israelites in Egypt who had cried out to Me that I had come down to redeem them and bring them out with outstretched arm? They threw themselves on the ground in worship and praised the deliverance. But then what happened? Things got much worse. Instead of the immediate deliverance they thought would come to pass at My Word to them through Moses, Pharaoh refused to cooperate and told their taskmasters to increase their work and give them less supplies to do it. Their lives became even more bitter than they had been before they got My promise. But that was just the beginning of the birth pangs of the birth of the nation of Israel. My dream of a people all My own, who would follow Me unreservedly and honor and teach My Word. The nation that, after great travail, would give birth to the promised Messiah who would save the world.
After numerous plagues and trials, in one night, after partaking of the Passover Lamb and covering their homes in the blood of the lamb, the nation was born free. And how did I lead them out? “And He brought forth His people with joy, His chosen ones with joyful shouting and singing.” Psalm 105:43. And there was not one feeble, sick, or broken among them, despite the trials. They were all healed. And they were laden with silver and gold though they had been slaves. Psalm 105:37.
“Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You in a time when You may be found. Surely in a flood of great waters they will not reach him. You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance.” Psalm 32:6-7. There, do you see? Onto your knees in prayer in our secret place you give birth to your dream and the flood cannot reach you for I surround you with joyful songs of deliverance. Of course, we are talking about the Voice of Thanksgiving again. That is your victory. When all looks lost and you are chained to the ground in the innermost prison of the greatest challenge of your life, what do you do? Sing songs of thanksgiving and praise for the fulfillment of the promise and your victory! Like Paul in Philippi. Like Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah. Like David hiding in caves running from king Saul.
It is darkest before the dawn. Keep your eyes on the promises and not on your circumstances and your physical condition. You have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. 2 Peter 1:19.
Never give up. Take down the walls that are blocking your miracle with a shout. But sometimes you have to walk around it for seven days before it comes down. With Joseph and David it took 13 years. But with Jehoshaphat it was in less than 24 hours. It is always better with the assembly and not just you alone. “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” Hebrews 10:23-25.
I love you. This year you will face the greatest challenge of your life. But the answer? You overcome the greatest challenge with the Greatest One. Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. But you have to shout the victory with full voice as you sing and praise. Never forget the Voice of Thanksgiving, it is your strongest weapon of all.