Perhaps the truest test of the depth of our faith is discovered in how, where, and when we praise God. When is He worthy enough for our full confidence? How do we feel about releasing praise when life has bottomed out? Will God see us pressing in to Him in our times and places of impossibility? The Prophet Jeremiah was living in a context of massive destruction and ruin. His words in those circumstances reveal the deep emotional struggle He was having with God, and why God had allowed catastrophe to find His people. Yet, in the midst of the ruin and devastation, Jeremiah gives some of the most important and motivating words for our faith in all of the Old Testament. His words must become our own when life is not lending itself to easy praise.

The war most frequently waged against believers occurs between the ears. Demonic warfare is lasered-in on our minds. If the enemy can deform our thoughts, he can more easily deceive us into walking pathways that are unfit for us. How do we fight back in this war against our minds? The Apostle Paul shared some truths with the ancient church at Corinth which remind us to take a highly proactive, militant, and disciplined stance in winning the war of the mind. He plays mind-games. It cannot be a game to us. We must view it as a war that we will win.

In the end, even the greatest heroes must die. It is a sobering reminder that there is only one King who reigns forever, and His name is not David. What does a man after God’s own heart do when he knows he is soon to leave earth? David prioritized passing the torch to the next generation via his son, Solomon. Rather than going out with a whimper, David gave a final roar from his lion-hearted life as he left Solomon some wise and daring counsel in order to ensure that Solomon reigned well in Israel. David, the great man of war and worship exited this earth with a kiss of grace as he entered into the eternal reign of his own King.

Because we are promised a battle, we need to ready ourselves with a mindset to win. In the Kingdom, you do not fight the same way people fight in the world. Our battle is not primarily a natural warfare. We fight in the Spirit, and we utilize spiritual weapons for waging war. When the struggle does not turn in our favor quickly, God calls us into overcoming the opposing thing via endurance, hope, and deep trust. The absence of battles is never offered to us by God. Victory, however, is the standing offer from Heaven. This passage reminds us that we will need to know what it is to undergo before we know what it is to overcome. Have you learned yet how to win in the Kingdom?

One of the greatest needs in this present hour is for believers to be prepared in HOW to win the victories which God appoints for us. For discerning believers, there is no denying the massive warfare that the Church is experiencing. One of the most alarming evidences that we may not be winning the war is that many Christians do not even sense that there is a war at all. For those who do discern the battle and are believing God for the victory, we must become more skilled in understanding the processes by which God defeats what opposes His children individually and collectively. The famous showdown between Israel and Egypt contains some of the most valuable pieces of strategy for how we cooperate with God to decidedly defeat our foes.

Everyone knows about David’s sin with Bathsheba and the subsequent murder of her husband. Yet, did you know that David himself classified a separate event in his life as an even greater sin? The cost for this sin was higher even though the action of this sin does not seem quite as scandalous. Once confronted with his transgression and having paid the full price, David chooses to build an altar to the God who forgave him and stopped the terrible consequences form going any further. In this scene from David’s life, we receive a core Kingdom key that every follower of Jesus must carry. If we will be invited to ascend God’s holy hill like David was, we will all do so along the pathway of sacrifice for the rest of our days on earth.

There are certain topics which can almost instantly divide Christians who are gathered in a room together. Bible translations, worship music preferences, whether or not a Christian can ever partake of alcohol, the role of women in ministry…Christians certainly know how to have heated debates on these issues. Another controversy surrounds the practice of speaking and praying in tongues. Perhaps above any other spiritual gift mentioned in the Bible, the gift of tongues brings forth strong opinions. This episode of Truth Shots removes our opinions off the table and leaves us staring at only the Scriptures to decide whether or not speaking in tongues is for the present day among God’s people.

The rebel son, Absalom, is dead. David has grieved the death of his son, but the Kingdom keeps moving in spite of David’s personal loss. Now, Israel has no clear king. In this season of David’s life and leadership, the people in the kingdom of Israel are actually the focus. What do they do after rejecting their true king, welcoming Absalom to rule, witnessing his tragic failure and death…and now having nowhere to turn for help and leadership as a nation? David extends his people a merciful opportunity to welcome him back for a fresh start as king of the people. In this narrative, modern believers find a beautiful picture of the greater King, Jesus Christ, and how He reaches out to us even when we have spent a dark season spurning his authority and rejecting His rulership in our lives. None who will repent and welcome Him to rule again need ever fear that He will refuse them as they once refused Him. He is the King who graciously reaches back out to rebels and offers them a second chance.

As David’s son, Absalom steals the throne from his father, the king of Israel is forced to flee Jerusalem. On his way out he encounters one of the most reprehensible characters in the entire Old Testament. A man named Shimei unleashes upon David years of pent-up bitterness, anger and contempt. What will King David do - how will the man after God’s own heart respond when verbally, publicly attacked? From this moment in David’s life, we can gain both wisdom and empowerment from God when we find ourselves treated wrongly by others. Bitterness and resentment are poison to the soul. David’s response helps us to see a higher road to choose when we are attacked. This road is steep, so it is not easy; but it leads to a powerful place with God.

One of the battles that most believers must occasionally fight is our tendency to drift. We can slip into neutral in our spiritual journey. We get distracted, fail to prioritize our personal relationship with Christ, and give the best of ourselves to lesser things. Sometimes, when we drift too far, we can actually fall into spiritual slumber. When we close our spiritual eyes, we fail to see the glories of God and the dangers of the devil. Jesus wanted His followers about this, and He spoke in a way that conveys He was certain is was already happening to some. What was His counsel to these people who are spiritually asleep? He told them to wake up and recognize that spiritual slumber can become a disaster.