The commander of the Lords army.

Looking out on the city street this morning I am transfixed on the busyness of early morning city life.

Potential new students are arriving with parents and friends to visit the university. Workmen are starting to repair some gas pipes in the road, coach loads of tourists flock towards the Cathedral headed up by people holding up coloured signs so that the group won't get lost. Shoppers enter the stores with wide eyed anticipation of what they will buy. Buses, lorries and cars go bumper to bumper or fender to fender for my USA readers!

So I am sitting on our reception desk today. It's the only desk I can get today, as we are having a new office built right now next door.

Sanctuary 21, the city prayer house Dawn and I oversee is open and ready to roll today.

As I watch the thousands of people walking the pavements directly outside, I wonder how many of them know God?

I feel a bit overwhelmed by the responsibility we have to usher the love of christ into this world.

The task seems too big.

Way too big.

Then my eye catches the latest prayer request, freshly attached to the walls along with the many thousands of other prayer requests written on cards from our city prayer hatch.

It reads.

"Please take my pain away, even for just one day. And please let the Judge be an in a good mood this afternoon"

I know who wrote it.

A young lad of 19. Hopelessly lost in the world of drug addiction. He is due in court this afternoon on possession charges.

So I think to myself

"How on earth can I even begin to help this lad?

The task seems to big.

Then my thought trail is interrupted by Kay.

Kay is a city beat police officer. She comes in on a regular basis to chat with us about stuff happening in the city and it is vital information for the positioning of our prayers for the city. I completely adore her. She has such a heart for the lost.

She isn't a Christian.

Yet!

Kay and I chatted about stuff happening currently, and by the time she had finished, I was wondering? How can we possibly help in these situations?

They seem way out of our league.

Even last night we were praying with a lady who had lost her daughter a while back, but understandably hasn't been able to get to grips with it at all. As her tears and groans and words spilled out, as she wondered out aloud where is God in all of this, I sat afterwards and wondered, how can I really help this woman?

But!

Wait!

Scripture dropped into my heart just now.

Joshua 5: 13-15

13 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”

14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord[e] have for his servant?”

15 The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.

I guess Joshua was faced a few questions like, "how on earth can we penetrate those walls around Jericho? There's probably no chance, it's way too big a challenge?"

A bit like my thinking this morning.

But!

The vision of a man standing in front of him with his sword drawn high, claiming neutral standing, and confidently claiming to be commander of the Lords Army, startles Joshua.

He suddenly realises who this is.

And many theologians claim we are talking about Jesus Christ here, and it's amazing how Joshua suddenly realises this and falls to the ground in reverence.

The commander of the army of the lord instructs him to take off his sandals for the place he is standing is Holy.

I think the word is today that however big a challenge we have in front of us.

Whatever that challenge may be.

However big it seems.

If we stay close to God.

Give him the reverence he requires, if we take off our sandals as it were, then notice how he has his sword drawn.

He will fight for us, he is going before us, he is victorious.

So.

Nothing is too big.

No challenge too daunting.

No scenario unconquerable.

If.

If we recognise the commander of the army of the Lord.

Nothing is too big.
Nothing is unconquerable.
Nothing is so daunting that we convince ourselves that we may as well give up now.

Joshua conquered Jericho.

But in order to conquer Jericho he had to allow Christ to conquer him first.

He had to hand over the command to Jesus.

In his own strength? He'd probably never of even made it over the river the walls of the city.

So guys that big massive thing we see standing in the way of us?

Don't tackle it in own own strength.

Recognise that we are not the commander.

Allow the commander of the Lords army to conquer us first.

Take off our sandals and fall to our knees.

Allow the spirit of God to overcome our desire to be in control, to command our own steps, or to fight our own battles.

Then we can conquer whatever comes before us, in the strength of the Lord.

Anything!

I prayed like mad for the young lad going to court.

He is back now.

The Judge was in a good mood.

So the work goes on to fight for this lads and loads of others very lives.

But with the commander of the army of the Lord at the front?

I can be confident of victory.

Loads of favour on your lives today.