THE POWER OF ONE

 

Marcella Ward   May 26, 2021 

 One man of you shall chase a thousand: for the Lord your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you.  Joshua 23:10 KJV

 What is the power of one?  The power of one is about individuals who have taken a stand and because of this, they have changed the world or the sphere in which they live. Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, David killed Goliath, Gideon led a small army of 300 and was victorious over the enemy. Esther was instrumental in saving the Jewish people from annihilation. Mary the Mother of Jesus, offered her body to house the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords!  After an encounter with Jesus at the well, the Samaritan woman became an evangelist to bring the Good News to her people.  Even though these had the power of one, they depended and were given strength by THE ONE GOD. 

It does not have to be a famous person or a person with great authority or fame.  It could be the average person like Rosa Parks who refused to go to the back of the bus.  It could be a famous person, such as Martin Luther King Jr., who stood up against discrimination. 

The power of one is also about unity.  I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—  I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.  John 17:22-23 NIV

The power of one is also the battle between good and evil.  The evil one seeks to steal, kill and destroy. One of his favorite weapons is division and he loves to do this in the Church.  The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10 NIV    The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.  1 John 3:8 NIV   All it takes is one evil person to rise up and manipulate and spew his or her ideology for the “good” of the people.  And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.   2 Corinthians 11:14 NIV

 How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity! Psalm 133:1 NIV

then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.  Philippians 2:2 NIV

For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function,  so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. Romans 12:1-5 NIV

We need to be united as believers to stand against the plans of evil.  One thing I have noticed is that many today are not standing together against evil.  There is strength in unity.  We need to stand together to show strength for what we believe in and who we are in Christ.   Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you. Leviticus 26:8 NIV

The Body of Christ needs to be unified, especially at this time when there is so much deception.  We need to stand up for what we believe.  There are only a few leaders who are standing up.  Many have succumbed to pressure from the media.  It only takes one person to start a movement.  Be that one person who takes a stand. In so doing, who knows, you may be the spark that sets a fire for an awakening in your sphere or even the world!!

“YOU WEREN’T BORN TO FIT IT IN-----------YOU WERE BORN TO STAND OUT!”  (Jim Caviezel)

One Solitary Life

He was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant. He grew up in another village, where he worked in a carpenter shop until he was 30. Then, for three years, he was an itinerant preacher.

He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family or owned a home. He didn't go to college. He never lived in a big city. He never traveled 200 miles from the place where he was born. He did none of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but himself.

He was only 33 when the tide of public opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied him. He was turned over to his enemies and went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross between two thieves. While he was dying, his executioners gambled for his garments, the only property he had on earth. When he was dead, he was laid in a borrowed grave, through the pity of a friend.

Twenty centuries have come and gone, and today he is the central figure of the human race. I am well within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned--put together--have not affected the life of man on this earth as much as that one, solitary life.*

*Attributed to James Allen Francis.

Marcella Ward   Author of "Stolen Identity: Plan of the Evil One" 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                    IF YOU STAND OTHERS WILL FOLLOW

Marcella Ward   May 31, 2023

³² David said to Saul, “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.”

³³ Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”

³⁴ But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, ³⁵ I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. ³⁶ Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. ³⁷ The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”

⁴⁸ As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. ⁴⁹ Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.

⁵⁰ So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.

When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. ⁵² Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines to the entrance of Gath^[f] and to the gates of Ekron. 1 Samuel 17 NIV

“Rosa Parks (1913—2005) helped initiate the civil rights movement in the United States when she refused to give up her seat to a white man on a Montgomery, Alabama bus in 1955. Her actions inspired the leaders of the local Black community to organize the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Led by a young Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the boycott lasted more than a year—during which Parks not coincidentally lost her job—and ended only when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that bus segregation was unconstitutional. Over the next half-century, Parks became a nationally recognized symbol of dignity and strength in the struggle to end entrenched racial segregation.” (By: History.com Editors Updated: January 11, 2023 | Original: November 9, 2009)

“On June 5, 1989, one day after the Tiananmen Square massacre destroyed the spirits of many of the protesters who had gathered there, an unidentified man in Beijing stood defiantly in front of a row of military tanks sent by the Chinese government.

The unbelievable confrontation was captured on film and thus immortalized. As for the courageous protester who was never concretely identified, he has simply become known as “Tank Man” or the “Unknown Rebel.” (“How ‘Tank Man’ Became An Enduring Symbol Of Resistance At The Tianamen Square Protests by Natasha Ishak Edited by John Kuroski December 19, 2021 updated December 22,2021)

There are countless times that one individual stood up and was able to encourage and motivate others to take a stand.  Look at what is happening now as one individual after another has stood up for American and Christian values against Bud Light and Target stores.  If we don’t take a stand, then who will? 

ISAIAH 6:8

⁸ Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”

And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” NIV

YES LORD, SEND ME!!

Marcella Ward   May 31, 2023    Author of “Stolen Identity: Plan of the Evil One”

 

 

 

                                                            FACING THE GIANTS

 David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.  This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel.  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.”

 As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him.  Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.

 So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.

 David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine’s sword and drew it from the sheath. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword.  I Samuel 17:45-51 NIV

Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.  I Samuel 17:40 NIV  “The number 5 symbolizes God's grace, goodness and favor toward humans and is mentioned 318 times in Scripture. Five is the number of grace, and multiplied by itself, which is 25, is 'grace upon grace' (John 1:16). The Ten Commandments contains two sets of 5 commandments. The first five commandments are related to our treatment and relationship with God, and the last five concern our relationship with others humans.”  (Meaning of Numbers in the Bible The Number 5Ask a Question!   -   Newsletter Biblical Meaning of Numbers)

Facing the giants in our lives takes courage and faith just like David.  David knew, based on his own experiences, that God had been faithful and he encouraged himself in this.  But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it.  Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”  I Samuel 17:34-37 NIV

When we are standing up for our faith, especially in these times, we are standing against the world which is trying to dictate who we are supposed to be and what we are supposed to think and what we are supposed to say.  We need to be like David and face the giants not only in the world (media, politicians, etc.) but the personal giants that we face.  God does not operate in a spirit of fear but faith.  For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.  2 Timothy 1:7 NIV

David was given grace to face the giant.  He knew that with God he was an army and not alone. He chose 5 smooth stones to bring down the giant.  Why did he choose five stones?  It does not directly say in the Bible but some have deduced that Goliath had four brothers that David may have had to deal with.  Also, how would David know that the first stone would bring the giant down?  I believe it was God’s grace that brought the giant down in the first blow.

David used Goliath's own sword to kill the giant.  David used a stone and a sword.  How do we bring down the giants in our lives?  We use a stone, the cornerstone, Jesus Christ and the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God.  When my precious granddaughter, Anastasia, was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor on one of her kidneys while she was still in her mother’s womb, we, as well as many family and friends used the sword of the Spirit and the Name above all names, Jesus Christ to speak healing over her.  A few days after her birth, the biopsy indicated that the tumor was not cancerous and they were able to remove the kidney that had the tumor wrapped around it and she is now a lively, beautiful, five year old who is a delight and a testimony to God’s grace.  By the way, the name Anastasia in Greek means “Resurrection.”

Face your giants and use the Sword of the Spirit and the Name above all names, Jesus Christ to bring them down!  We are not alone.  We have been given the weapons for our warfare.  The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.  2 Corinthians 10:4 NIV

Marcella Ward November 24, 2021