My enemies did their best to kill me, but the Lord rescued me. The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. Songs of joy and victory are sung in the camp of the godly. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things! The strong right arm of the Lord is raised in triumph. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things! I will not die; instead, I will live to tell what the Lord has done.
Psalm 118:13-17, New Living Translation
I was stirred this morning by the “strong arm of the Lord.” Over and over in my spirit, I kept hearing – the strong arm of the Lord will make peace with your enemies.
I feel so strong this morning that many can only see their enemies surrounding them. Like the servant with Elisha, many can only see the enemy surrounding them, wondering how the Lord is going to rescue them. (2 Kings 6:8:23)
However, I was reminded that on the Jewish calendar, we are in the month of Elul—the final month before a new Jewish year begins. The Jewish people’s symbolism of this month is often associated with the phrase “The King is in the Field.” This means that it’s a month of reflection, connection, and intimacy with God, as it’s seen as the time when the King would leave His palace to come and be among His people. What a God who loves His people enough to go off His throne (thank you, Jesus) to come and be among us!
This is how I saw it in the Spirit – the King of Kings is coming with victory in His right hand to fight the battles you have been relentlessly trying to fight. And for good reason – you have done everything possible to mend relationships, to bring peace to your home, to bring peace to situations. I would even go so far as to say that you have been obedient to do what God has asked you to do out of obedience, but to no avail. And, friend, that is exactly where we need to be in this season. I have learned in my walk with God that sometimes obedience brings what seems like an immediate breakthrough. But other times it seems to lead to one thing and then to another, often seeming like the situation gets worse because of our obedience. And while our obedience isn’t directly tied to the warfare or to worsening situations, it is tethering our hearts even closer to a God who can fight our battles. That is why obedience, even in the grime and grit of the wilderness, is so important. It doesn’t make sense half of the time, and often our expected outcome rarely produces what we imagined. But, somehow, more grace, more strength, and more covering from our Father is produced, because without those moments of obedience that seemingly produce nothing in our lives, He works it all together for our good. And suddenly, where we saw nothing, grace is multiplied and fruit is produced. I am convinced more than ever that if we don’t give up, a harvest will come from this. Even this will produce a harvest for His glory. Even this will produce a reward of peace.
If Psalm 23 has taught me anything over the last few weeks, it is that if I am going to sit at a table and feast in the presence of my enemies, I need peace to do so. Your enemies have taunted, terrorized, and pushed you into a corner long enough. What has seemed like a valley with a casting shadow of death for so many children of God – death of dreams, death of calls and giftings, death of relationships, death of hope, death of desires, and so on – is a pathway to a table of peace, joy, and fulfillment. It might not make much sense to you now, but there is a reason David was still able to proclaim that “you anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.”
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Psalm 23, New King James Version, emphasis mine
If I am to sit at a table God has prepared, I need peace with my enemies to do so.
I need peace to sit among the very things that tried to kill me and convince me that I am nothing of which God has called me to.
I need peace to sit at the table of the Lord and feast without fear.
I need peace to sit and know that it was God who fought my battles and gave me victory despite the vicious.
As Proverbs 16:17 says, it is “When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.” A man’s ways are his obedience to the Lord. Do you see the connection? Without your obedience in the valley or in the wilderness, peace could never be produced. Our obedience pleases the Lord, and it is good to press on, knowing that whether or not we see immediate fruit from those acts, God is storing up peace at a table you’re welcome to sit at.
THE INHABITANTS OF THE WILDERNESS
I have been pondering for the last two weeks on Psalm 74:14 (New King James Version)-
You broke the heads of Leviathan in pieces, And gave him as food to the people inhabiting the wilderness.
I had a dream back in the winter that I was in my car, driving on a beautiful sunny day. My road suddenly turned into a flooded lake, and I found myself bobbing through rough waters being stirred by a creature. I was being tossed back and forth, but the sun was still shining. As violent as the waters felt, I never lost sight of trying to get back onto the road and continue about my day. In the dream, I pursued the path I was meant for despite the struggle of the enemy. Finally, after what seemed like a long delay, my tires met the road, and I saw to my left a giant crocodile tail with green scales break the water and swim off. My car found the road again, and as I drove out of the lake, I noticed the road before me was paved with fall leaves blowing gently in the wind as if nothing had happened.
When I woke from the dream, the Holy Spirit spoke to me that this is what it is like in the spirit. A peak behind what my natural eyes often cannot see is that there has been a great enemy at work – a spirit of Levithain – prohibiting things in the spirit to move forward. But I felt like my home, things would begin to shift, and a breakthrough would begin to happen during the start of the new year in the fall. And as wild as it seems, September 2 started that long-awaited breakthrough of a new season.
I believe the spirit of Leviathan, a sea creature mentioned in various places of the bible (namely, Job 41, Isaiah 27:1, Psalm 74:14, and possibly Revelation 12:3), has risen among many in the spirit to hold back, twist, and pridefully despise the children of God. The spirit of Levithan is really just a type and shadow for a spirit of pride, something of which we know was the downfall of Lucifer himself. Why am I mentioning this evil spirit? Because it is an enemy of God that I feel many in the wilderness are dealing with. You might not understand it as something in the spirit, but I believe the pride you have been coming up against in relationships, in workplaces, in churches, in so many areas of life, is this force. But why is what I have been asking the Holy Spirit. His reply was – So the strong arm of God can once again defeat a great and powerful enemy set to destroy the work of God in our lives. This spirit twists, contorts, and destroys pathways for the righteous, but it is God – Jehovah Nissi – who raises a standard and fights this battle.
I have been sitting on Psalm 74, which says, “He [God] broke the heads of Leviathan in pieces, and gave him as food to the people inhabiting the wilderness.” This is a good thing for us because it means that what once tried to destroy us and fight us, God crushes the head of the enemy and feeds it to those who have been tormented in the wilderness by it. To put it plainly, your enemies become your feast, and I believe God is preparing that table for those who seem to be dwelling in the wilderness. It is God who has to fight this battle, friend. My dream has become increasingly more important as I have been trekking on since I had it earlier this year. It didn’t make sense at the time, but now I see a fuller revelation as my own home has had a war waged against it. It has seemed as if breakthroughs have been delayed, situations have gotten worse, and so on, but a bright new day is dawning. Whether it is soon or whether you continue to wait, the promise is clear: God is fighting your battle, and victory is rising.
I wrote at the end of May a piece on the justice of God rising like the noonday. This excerpt still applies:
For the last few months, a personal prayer of mine has been for justice. Justice to reign in certain situations in my husband and I’s life. Not that any particular person has wronged us, but the enemy waged a war against us in the last season and we believe it is time for justice to rise over our home. One day in prayer a couple of weeks ago, I continued to pray along these lines and saw a large man in white walking in front of our home with a sword on his right side. I am not one to have visions often (I’m much more of a dreamer in this instance), but what I saw in the spirit has continued to resonate with me as I have personally prayed for justice. I believe this is true with His footsteps and His timing. He is walking among those who need justice, who need restoration, and with His mighty sword, justice will reign down on our enemies. Not by our might, but by His might and power. His glory will be magnified because of the things He will rework for our good.
The Man in white is walking among His people in this hour. To rework the hardships, to restore and reform the pieces of our lives, and to bring justice to our situations. I hear in the spirit – “I am getting ready to multiply grace.” The grace of God might seem pulled back from your life, but just as your enemies might have many things against you, HIS GRACE will be multiplied to destroy every work against your life.
THE SONGS OF THOSE WHO DWELL
Two points of Scripture that I will leave you with –
My enemies did their best to kill me, but the Lord rescued me. The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. Songs of joy and victory are sung in the camp of the godly. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things! The strong right arm of the Lord is raised in triumph. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things! I will not die; instead, I will live to tell what the Lord has done.
Psalm 118:13-17, New Living Translation
One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord.
Psalm 27:4-6, New International Version
There is something so special about the song of those who have been dwelling in the wilderness. I see the gates of the palace opening, people who have been dwelling in the wilderness being led back by the King to the house of the Lord so that they might dwell. Songs of victory and shouts of joy precede them as the King marches triumphantly with the head of every enemy. This is what the Lord is going to do for many who feel stuck in the wilderness. He is going to lead you out and allow you to dwell in victory in His home.
I believe many will resonate with the song Defender –
You go before I know that You’ve even gone to win my war. You come back with the head of my enemy. You come back and You call it my victory. You go before I know that You’ve even gone to win my war. Your love becomes my greatest defense. It leads me from the dry wilderness
Listen to the full song here.
My friends, cling to the Lord in this season. If you have no idea what to do next, find a place for your knees to touch the ground and praise Him. Confuse your enemies with your worship. Just as Mary poured her oil out on the feet of Jesus and Judas was taunting her worship in the corner, continue to break open your oil and worship Him. Because the King is always worth the praise. He is always worth the worship. He is always worth your tears. Don’t succumb to the pressure that you have to move from your position at His feet. Behold the One who has feet with nail scars for your salvation and redemption. Behold the One who has feet like brass refined in fire, and His voice are like many waters (Revelation 1:15). Sit at those feet while you pour out every ounce of your pain and brokenness, knowing that it is those feet that will crush the head of the enemy for you.
If you take anything with you, let it be this: The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. (Romans 16:20)
Take heart,
Hannah F. Gillespie
AI generated image only.
Leave a Reply