December 7, 2009 Ration

I Chronicles 5:20b

“…for they cried out to God in the battle, and He granted their urgent plea because they trusted in Him.”


The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh were valiant men who were experts in war (v.18), and yet they knew enough to cry out to God in the midst of the battle.

Artist, would you or others consider yourself, at least in some measure, valiant, confident, skilled, or maybe even an expert in your field of artistry? You too better know how to cry out to God in your work and battle. God is your greatest strength.

Our battles are not so much for life and limb in the arts, but we fool ourselves when we do not approach our labors as such. The battle is for your faith: what will you put your hope in? Art? Your plan? Another human? A market? Your skills? Your latest work? The battle is for your faithfulness: Are you faithful with the charge the Lord has given you, or have you stirred up your own wars? The battle is for your affections: Do they culminate and terminate in your pleasure in the Lord Himself, or are you becoming like the many Romans who have exchanged the glory of God for the glory of what God has made glorious (Romans 1)? The battle is for your fruitfulness: Are you harvesting and enjoying the fruits of an apprentice-like fellowship with God in the particular gig He has given you, or do you know better how to sow your seed and reap your little peck measure? The battle is for your observation: Do you see as the Lord reveals? The battle is for your comprehension: Do you discern what the Lord knows? The battle is for your articulation. The battle is for your effectiveness. The battle is for your very soul.

Our battles are many, artists. But be encouraged, God is able to grant your earnest plea! God’s ability is not in question; you must not question it. Prove that you do not question God’s ability to deliver by crying out to Him for your deliverance. God’s ability and God’s desire are not of the same category. Ability refers to what God is capable of doing. Desire refers to what God would be pleased to exercise of His many abilities. If you can cast your whole soul on the ability of God, while entrusting yourself completely to the desire of God, you will have all that you need in that battle to accomplish God’s purposes and to enjoy His grace for you in it. Consider Christ's plea in the garden, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will" (Mark 14:36). Remember Paul's encouragement: “...we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh were valiant men who, in this battle at least, trusted in the Lord and not in their expertise, their might, their sword, or their shield. The Lord worked for them because they trusted in Him.

Artists, you are in battle all day long. The affections of your heart are enticed and assaulted at every turn, but only by an enemy who has lost the war already. Learn to cry to God. Trust in Him. It is your greatest and most fruitful exercise! Then play the artist in the strength that He gives.

Jason Harms