DO NOT LOSE HEART!

I don’t often say this, but I believe the Lord has given me a very clear word for believers in these troubled moments.

I know you have been shocked as I have about the shootings at the churches in Colorado, and last week there was the senseless shooting at a mall in Omaha. It seems like no matter where you turn, there is violence and upheaval. The economy is in trouble over the mortgage woes. Oil prices are causing major problems as we all struggle to pay record prices for gasoline. The war on terrorism is bogged down in Iraq and Afghanistan and seems like it will never end. The Middle East is a boiling cauldron. Major scandals have again rocked the church world, with priests and ministers being accused of child molestation, immorality with family members, and financial misdealings on multiple levels. It seems as though there is a crisis of some kind everywhere we turn.

Early yesterday morning, Sunday, December 9, God quickened a passage to my heart that is a challenging and strengthening word: Isaiah 7:1-9.

Here’s the story in a nutshell. Ahaz was the king of Judah (also known as the house of David), whose capital city was Jerusalem. The Jews were divided into two kingdoms at that time; Judah was the southern kingdom and Israel (also known as Ephraim) was the northern kingdom. Israel had formed an alliance with Syria (also known as Aram) and together they decided to march against and attack Judah and Jerusalem.

When Ahaz was informed that Syria and Israel had become allies and were moving against Judah, verse 2 says, “So the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.” Ahaz and his people were staggered at the thought of the military might and destruction that was about to be unleashed on them. Their world had been shaken and they were literally trembling with fear!

God spoke to the prophet Isaiah and told him to go and meet with Ahaz. Then He gave Isaiah a word for the king and the people. Here is the essence of the word of the Lord for Ahaz—and I believe it is for us, as well.

Verse 4: “Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid. Do not lose heart because of these two.”

· Be careful—Be wise and cautious about your life and how you lead it. There is a lot of wisdom available to God’s children through His Word and through prayer.

· Keep calm—Don’t panic when you hear of tumultuous things happening. God is still in charge.


· Don’t be afraid—Fear paralyzes us and instead of doing the right things, we do nothing; instead of praying and trusting, we whine and moan about how God has let us down. Don’t give in to the spirit of fear!

· Don’t lose heart—Don’t give up, don’t quit, no matter how difficult it looks. Don’t lose your heart to follow and trust God. Proverbs says we are to “guard our heart” (Proverbs 4:23). The heart is where quitting is birthed!

God said in verse 7: “What looks like total disaster for Judah will not take place, it will not happen!” Isaiah then prophetically lays out what is going to happen to the Syrians and to Israel. Within two years the leaders of both of the outlaw nations were dead and within 65 years Ephraim (the northern kingdom) was gone— it ceased to exist.

Isaiah finishes this word with this very potent statement that reaches across the centuries to where we are today. “If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all” (Isaiah 7:9b NIV).

This is not the time to be putting your faith in anything but in Him. Faith in the church is not going to cut it; having faith in people is dangerous; having faith in pet doctrines about faith is dangerous. Our world is being shaken! Things we thought never would happen, are! People that we thought were trustworthy, aren’t. And because of all this, some are giving up; they have lost heart! God’s word to us is, “Don’t lose heart, stand firm in your faith!”

The cutting edge of this prophetic word is that “we must stand firm in our faith; we cannot cut and run. To cut and run exposes us to the attack of the enemy.”

“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal” (Isaiah 26:3-4 NIV).