Overcoming vs Being Overcome
I saw a post last night about the difference between overcoming and being overcome.
The definition of overcoming is "to get the better of; surmounting".
A definition of being overcome is "to become overwhelmed".
Within context of our faith lives, our prayer times are often consumed with overcoming a situation, habit or addiction that diminishes our focus on the Lord.
I find it interesting that to "be overwhelmed with gratitude or thankfulness" at being released from the bondage of those same situations, habits or addictions is a derivative etymology (overcome).
We sometimes miss the importance of the action that occurs between these two points. It is reciprocal in nature (I think that's the word I'm looking for).
Yes, we find ourselves thankful when the Lord guides and directs us out of a perplexing circumstance. Rarely are we overcome with gratitude enough to drop to our knees in a humble posture of prayer.
We might know we aren't worthy of God's grace and mercy, but we don't show it. We do quick shout-outs to God for His solutions in life (which is fine). But are we cultivating a habit of sincere, humble reflectiveness through our grateful prayers?
We focus on our plight but not the character, compassion and love the Creator has for us.
God intentionally built in reminders throughout the Bible to help us remember the wonderful things He has done for us:
WHO HE IS
Isaiah 46:9-10 NKJV
"Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure...'"
Psalms 96:9 NKJV
"Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth."
Nehemiah 4:14 NKJV
"And I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, 'Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.'”
All three verses remind us of God's sovereignty and strength, from generation to generation.
WHAT HE HAS DONE
Deuteronomy 8:2 NKJV
"And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not."
I didn't realize I had an OT life verse until this moment. God has been leading me in my wilderness these past few years to humble me and test what was in my heart. Mind blown.
Deuteronomy 8:18 NKJV
“And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day."
And this verse reminds me that with all of His testing and training, God's blessings come solely from Him.
Psalms 77:11 NKJV
"I will remember the works of the Lord; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old."
Psalms 103:2 NKJV
"Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits..."
Jonah 2:7 NKJV
“When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord; and my prayer went up to You, into Your holy temple."
This reminds me that the Lord's Holy Temple is within our own bodies now. (Lord, forgive me for polluting Your temple for so long with litter and contaminants.)
I Chronicles 16:12 NKJV
"Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth..."
These Scripture verses are why we read His Word every day: to remember Him and all He has done for us.
WHAT HE REQUIRES OF US
Ecclesiastes 12:1-2 NKJV
"Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you say, 'I have no pleasure in them': while the sun and the light, the moon and the stars, are not darkened, and the clouds do not return after the rain..."
In remembering God, it's important to also remember His warnings. We must be prepared for what is to come, and to not be overcome by world events.
God also simply asks us to remember Him because if we do, we'll realize He never leaves His people. Oh sure, He might have gone away for a few hundred years between the OT and NT because self-determined people thought they could do things without Him, but He returned. He's always by our side. Even when He's quiet, He is working on the believer's behalf.
Exodus 20:8 NKJV
“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy."
Honoring Him by focusing on Him one day per week is not only the right and righteous thing to do; it prevents burnout for doing the things we must do the other six days. A Sabbath is a day of filling our spiritual tank for the journey the following week.
If God Himself created the universe in six days and rested on the seventh, and we are made in his image...well, you do the math. It is nothing short of arrogance to think we don't require the same amount of downtime as the Lord.
Luke 22:19-20 NKJV
"And [Jesus] took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, 'This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.' Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.'" (regarding the Lord's Supper) (also 1 Corinthians 11:24).
Coincidentally (not, it is certainly by design), we often commemorate The Lord's Supper through communion on the Sabbath. That works out quite nicely for forgetful beings.
Hebrews 13:3 NKJV
"Remember the prisoners as if chained with them—those who are mistreated—since you yourselves are in the body also."
This goes back to "love thy neighbor" (Matthew 22:9). "Remembering" includes enemies, friends, family, actual neighbors, and those that are maybe less fortunate or from "the wrong side of the tracks". Equality only exists in how we treat people — ALL people — in God's eyes.
Overcoming obstacles and being overcome with thankfulness is a large part of remembering God. They are spiritual disciplines meant to maintain faith, acknowledge His sovereignty, and recall His past faithfulness.
Remember to remember, and we learn the lesson of overcoming and being overcome.
In the words of the faithful believer Martin Luther King, Jr , "We shall overcome.."
And let us be overcome at Your sovereignty, Lord.
Mush
TRUSTING GOD'S PLAN IN THE WAITING: LESSONS FROM THE LIFE OF JOSEPH
A 22-Day Devotional
JACOB DIES
When we dig deep into the Bible, it’s really fun to see hidden treasures if you stop to ask questions along the way. When I see a number, a name, or a phrase that sticks out to me, I try to find the importance of it because every word in the Bible was God-inspired and has a purpose.
Today’s reading starts out with the fact that Jacob lived 17 years after arriving in Egypt. So this 130-year-old man who kept saying “I’m about to die”, managed to live another 17 years. Be encouraged, friend! You haven’t seen your last days! You may feel like there’s nothing left to live for based on how you feel today, but you don’t know God’s ultimate plan for you. You can get a second wind! Knowing Joseph was alive breathed new life into the old man. Don’t miss Joseph was 17 years old when he was sold off into slavery and God gave Jacob 17 more years with him in his old age. The grace of God and his goodness never ceases to amaze me!
One day Jacob falls ill and Joseph takes his now 20-something-year-old sons, Manasseh and Ephraim to say goodbye. Fatherly blessings are a big deal in Hebrew traditions with the oldest son getting the biggest blessing. In this instance, Jacob purposely blesses the youngest with the bigger blessing. This should remind you of the story of Jacob stealing his own brother Esau’s birthright blessing, but Jacob did it with purpose here. He also makes these two young men officially his children, and they now become part of the 12 tribes of Israel.
Right at the overly ripe age of 147, Jacob breathes his last in the presence of his sons. Joseph keeps his promise to bury him in Canaan, in the land God had promised Jacob.
Questions:
How do you see your days? Your best days are behind you, you are living your best days, or your best days are yet to come?
Does it give you encouragement even when Jacob said he was about to die, He was given 17 more years of LIFE?
What have you learned about Jacob from Joseph’s story?
TODAY'S ASSIGNED SCRIPTURE:
Genesis 47:28-31 NKJV
"[28] And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. So the length of Jacob’s life was one hundred and forty-seven years. [29] When the time drew near that Israel must die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, “Now if I have found favor in your sight, please put your hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me. Please do not bury me in Egypt, [30] but let me lie with my fathers; you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place.” And he said, “I will do as you have said.” [31] Then he said, “Swear to me.” And he swore to him. So Israel bowed himself on the head of the bed."
Genesis 48:1-22 NKJV
"[1] Now it came to pass after these things that Joseph was told, “Indeed your father is sick”; and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. [2] And Jacob was told, “Look, your son Joseph is coming to you”; and Israel strengthened himself and sat up on the bed. [3] Then Jacob said to Joseph: “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me, [4] and said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will make of you a multitude of people, and give this land to your descendants after you as an everlasting possession.’ [5] And now your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine. [6] Your offspring whom you beget after them shall be yours; they will be called by the name of their brothers in their inheritance. [7] But as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died beside me in the land of Canaan on the way, when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath; and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).” [8] Then Israel saw Joseph’s sons, and said, “Who are these?” [9] And Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom God has given me in this place.” And he said, “Please bring them to me, and I will bless them.” [10] Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. Then Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. [11] And Israel said to Joseph, “I had not thought to see your face; but in fact, God has also shown me your offspring!” [12] So Joseph brought them from beside his knees, and he bowed down with his face to the earth. [13] And Joseph took them both, Ephraim with his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh with his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him. [14] Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh was the firstborn. [15] And he blessed Joseph, and said: “God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The God who has fed me all my life long to this day, [16] The Angel who has redeemed me from all evil, Bless the lads; Let my name be named upon them, And the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; And let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.” [17] Now when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him; so he took hold of his father’s hand to remove it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. [18] And Joseph said to his father, “Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.” [19] But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations.” [20] So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will bless, saying, ‘May God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh!’ ” And thus he set Ephraim before Manasseh. [21] Then Israel said to Joseph, “Behold, I am dying, but God will be with you and bring you back to the land of your fathers. [22] Moreover I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow.”
Genesis 49:29-33 NKJV
"[29] Then he charged them and said to them: “I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, [30] in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite as a possession for a burial place. [31] There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife, there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah. [32] The field and the cave that is there were purchased from the sons of Heth.” [33] And when Jacob had finished commanding his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people."
PRAYER:
Dear Lord,
Give us Your wisdom and strength and memory to live each day intentionally as if our best days are to come, starting with today. We love You, Lord, and bless You on our knees in thankful prayer, Amen