Scripture: “A god has come into the camp,” the Philistines said. “We’re in trouble! Nothing like this has happened before. Woe to us! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods?” 1 Samuel 4:7
When I arrived in Tokyo I was suddenly made aware that everything was in Japanese. I am used to everything being in Spanish, but now Japanese. O.K. bad humor. Yes, there were signs that were in English, but my senses were so overwhelmed with all the colors and Japanese signs that it was very difficult for me to see the English signs. The simplest things, like, getting to baggage claim, purchasing a ticket, or using an ATM caused me to question my own intelligence. When I learned that my government travel card had been denied I questioned God and asked, “Why do you always make things so difficult for me?” Let’s just say for about 45 minutes I was stuck with the poor little me disease and wondering if God was even real. I know that sounds a bit dramatic and it is, but it really is amazing how quickly our minds can take us down unless we take control of it very quickly. As I finally figured out how to get outside to catch my bus for an hour and half ride to my hotel, I began to think God loves me, God cares about me and God has given me the power to choose how I will respond or react to this situation. Funny side note – I missed the first bus because I couldn’t figure out how to get outside of the airport. When I went back in to change my ticket I learned that the ticket counter was literally right next to the door I needed to go out the first time. Your thinking really does produce the results you are currently experiencing. And for 45 minutes if a non-believer had been observing me he or she may have wondered does he really believe God will take care of him in this situation because he sure looks stressed.
Has a non-believer ever amazed you by there faith? A church one time was being sued by a bar owner. You see the church had been praying that God would close the bar down. The bar caught fire and burned to the ground and the owner was suing the church because of its prayers. The church denied having anything to do with the fire, but the owner, a non-believer, was positive that this was an act of God. The judge ruled in the church’s favor, but commented about their lack of faith in their prayers and in their God.
The Philistines were enemies of Israel and yet they had more respect and reverence for God than the Israelites did. If you want to see how this plays out completely read the whole story in I Samuel 4-6. I wonder if we suffer from the same lack of faith that the Israelites suffered from.
Have you ever faced a situation that led you to say, “I could never do that!” That’s fruit of a small faith. What if you said, “I could never do that” but then you went to God and said, “God there is no way I can do that, if I am going to do this you are going to have to give me the courage and the strength. The only way I could possibly do that is you working in and through me.” Have you been holding back from offering forgiveness to someone thinking “I could never do that?” Have you been denying words of affirmation and comfort to your spouse because he or she wounded your pride?
God did lead the Israelites to triumph over the Philistines, but only after they admitted they couldn’t do it on their own. But before they could become all that God designed them to be they had to endure some very painful deaths to self, a lack of respect and reverence for God. What deaths does God need to do in your life?
By the way I did arrive safely in Misawa. I got my government card activated and I have had opportunities already to positively impact non-believers, why because I remembered that if I would just live with faith, even faith the size of a mustard seed, God would use me and prove to me that He really has my back. I hope you will discover that truth again today.

