He teaches my fingers to war
Greetings from the church! Before we get started, allow me to tell you a humorous tale. A young boy and his mother were attending church, and the boy was starting to become restless. Keep quiet, God is watching, his mother hushed. I guess God is good at hide and seek because I can't find Him, the youngster stated as he narrowed his eyes and turned to his mother. kids, I assume?
Psalm 144:1 is the text from which our verse for today is taken: "Praise be to the LORD my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle." The poem depicts God as a celestial warrior who prepares His followers for spiritual combat.
When we consider combat and fighting, physical confrontation frequently comes to mind. We are, however, involved in a different type of war—a spiritual one—in our relationship with God. According to Ephesians 6:12, this struggle is not against physical enemies but rather against spiritual powers of evil.
Consider the David and Goliath tale. A shepherd child named David faced off against the seasoned warrior giant Goliath. It appeared to be a one-sided match on paper. But according to David, who made this declaration in 1 Samuel 17:47, "All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD's, and he will give all of you into our hands."
David may have had fingers trained for a sling, but his heart had been educated for faith and reliance on God. His weapon was supernatural rather than natural. We all know how the tale ends: David triumphed!
We come up against numerous Goliaths in life. Our worries, our doubts, our crimes, and our past might be scary, even though they aren't nine-foot-tall warriors. But keep in mind that God is preparing our hands for combat. He provides us with spiritual weapons, including the Word of God as the Sword of the Spirit, the Belt of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, the Shoes of the Gospel of Peace, the Shield of Faith, the Helmet of Salvation, and the Shield of Faith (Ephesians 6:14–17).
God is teaching us how to be skillful in spiritual combat, just as a musician must train their fingers to play an instrument or an artist must learn to make beautiful art.
So let's allow God to prepare our hands for fight this week. Let's put on all of God's protection and resist the devil's tricks with steadfastness. Let's fight with divine strength rather than human tactics. Let's also face our giants with assurance, like David did, knowing that the Lord is in control of the conflict and has prepared us for triumph!
May the Lord, our Rock, who trains our hands for fight and our fingers for conflict, give us courage. As we enter this new week, prepared and ready for the struggles that lie ahead, let's keep this message in our hearts. Godspeed to everyone!
