Pressing through oppression

Faith is easy when things are going well and you are having a mountain top experience. But what happens when you are in the valley and even after calling Jesus’ name you still don’t feel him near?

Let us get to the heart of our lives with Jesus once we are saved. We expect to have mountaintop experiences and some time spent in the valley. Praise and worship are easy for saints at the top of the mountain because there is little resistance to their efforts. But I think what separates a true worshipper from the pack is how well they fellowship with God in their suffering.

What happens when the suffocating stresses of oppression have launched an all-out attack on our faith? We begin our trials with a desire to fight, but things don’t seem to get any better as time passes. To make matters worse, we cry out to Jesus with all the spiritual force we can summon, but we get no response. Faith is now being pushed to the limits, and we are genuinely in enemy-held territory. Our mind is the battleground for our soul, and whoever wins the battle of our mind will be the controlling force in our life. Either we will walk by faith and in the spirit, or we will walk by flesh and slowly erode into a person who possesses only disbelief. Let us examine this place and how we can win by pressing through oppression.

The Grave Cannot Praise You

“For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?” (Psalms 6:5) If you take a few moments to read the verses just before this one, you will get a clear picture of where the writer is coming from. The situation that they find themselves in has all but destroyed their ability to fight. The time and temperature of their test have had their most entire effects and have exploited every effort to achieve complete victory. Yet the oppressors have underestimated the resolve of a true worshipper!

I reword this verse to say, “The grave cannot praise you.” The writer says, “God, in my current state, I no longer possess the ability (I have the will, however) to praise you, nor do I even have the emotional strength to pull it off.” It is further intimated that they say, “But God if you just strengthen me for praise, I will gladly submit!” You see, sometimes we are so weakened by the tests that we cannot even praise without the help of God. But that fighting worshipper spirit within us cries out to God, saying, “Father, strengthen me for praise!“

Rock Bottom Praise

“And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out” (Luke 19:40). Despite the protests of the Pharisees, Jesus clearly states here that if a man does not praise Him, the rocks will certainly cry out. Jesus could have used any inanimate object to illustrate this point, but I’m glad he used stones. You see, he made an association between rocks and Praise though more could be made. This should be a great comfort for those who have hit rock bottom in our tests and trials.

When you hit rock bottom, you may feel surrounded by rocks; in one way of viewing it, you are surrounded by your troubles in many forms. But by changing your perspective to look at things the way Jesus does, you are not covered by the worst of your situation, but rather by Praise! Plus, nothing gets the attention of Jesus like some rock-bottom praise amid oppression.

Persistent Prayer

“For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me” (2 Corinthians 12:8). There is a school of thought that states we should pray a prayer of faith and leave it in the hands of God from that point forward. I will readily say that this type of prayer takes faith, but in some situations, I think the “press” type of prayer can get God’s attention.

While Moses was up on the mountain with God, the children of Israel fell into sin. God’s response to this was, “Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them …” (Exodus 32:10). God’s intention here was evident in that he would literally erase the Israelites and start anew with Moses. Yet Moses prayed a powerful prayer “And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people” (Exodus 32:13).

Take note of what Moses was doing during this prayer. He reminded God of his promise to his people and held God to his word. This was not disrespectful to God because God is perfect, and he will never let one single jot of his word fall to the ground. “If God said it, I believe it, that settles it” should be our motto. But this only works for Moses, right? Wrong because when God said, “… I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5), he made us a promise too. So when we pray, we can hold God to this promise! Pray repeatedly just like Paul did, and tell God that he made you this promise, and you believe every word he said. Pray persistently and find comfort in the assurance that “God is not a man, that he should lie …” (Numbers 23:19).

Perfect Weakness

Now back to Paul and the reply to his persistent praying. “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9). If ever there were a group of words formed into a sentence that should encourage us, it would have to be these.

“And he said unto me” lets us know that God eventually responded to Paul’s prayers. Let us then be encouraged that God hears our prayers, and he will react in his time.

“My grace is sufficient for thee” reminds us that despite the circumstances of our situation and how hard they may seem, God’s grace is still greater than them all.

“My strength is made perfect in weakness” is the central theme in our verse. It allows us to see that we are most definitely not without hope in our times of weakness. In these times, God’s strength is made perfect, which I believe is to say that it is made more evident to us because our strength is exhausted. How comforting to know that the battle is not ours but the Lord’s! (1 Samuel 17:47)

“Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities” is brutal to swallow for some people. After all, how are we supposed to rejoice amid the fire? Simple because his grace is sufficient, and his strength is made perfect. “But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.” (1 Peter 4:13)

“That the power of Christ may rest upon me” reminds us that if we rejoice amid our trials, we will also delight in him when we are delivered. His power and undeniable presence in our situation will be revealed to all, and God be the Glory!