Influencers Weekly Devotional by Frank Khalil

There we saw the giants. ( Num. 13:33 ) Giants stand for great difficulties, and giants are stalking everywhere.  They are in our families, in our churches, in our social life, in our own hearts. We must overcome them or they will eat us up, as these men of old said of the giants of Canaan. The men of faith said, "They are bread for us; we will eat them up." In other words, "We will be stronger by overcoming them than if there had been no giants to overcome." Now the fact is, unless we have the overcoming faith, we shall be eaten up, consumed by the giants in our path.  Let us have the spirit of faith that these men of faith had, and see God, and He will take care of the difficulties. It is when we are in the way of duty that we find giants.  It was when Israel was going forward that the giants appeared.  When they turned back into the wilderness, they found none. There is a prevalent idea that the power of God in a human life should lift us above all trials and conflicts.  The fact is, the power of God always brings a conflict and a struggle.  One would have thought that on his great missionary journey to Rome, Paul would have been carried by some mighty providence above the power of storms and enemies.  But on the contrary, it was one long, hard fight with persecuting Jews and all the powers of earth and hell coming against him.  At last he was saved, by the narrowest margin and had to swim ashore at Malta on a piece of wreckage, barely escaping a watery grave. Was that like the God of infinite power? Yes, just like Him.  And so Paul tells us that when he took the Lord Jesus Christ as the life of his body, a severe conflict immediately came; indeed, it was a conflict that never ended, a pressure that was persistent, but out of which he always emerged victorious through the strength of Jesus Christ. What best describes Paul's intense experience in facing Giants.  He said, "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed, always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be manifested in our body." What a ceaseless, strenuous struggle! But here are five points that we can learn: First is the idea is that crowding enemies were pressing in from every side, and yet they did not crush him because the police of heaven cleared the way just wide enough for him to get through.  The literal translation would be, "We are crowed on every side, but not crushed." Second, Paul was one whose way seemed utterly closed and yet he pressed through; there was light enough to show him the next step. The Revised Version translates it, "Perplexed but not unto despair." One other way of saying it is "Without a way, but not without a by-way." Third, the enemy was in hot pursuit while the Divine Defender stood by, and he was not left alone.  Again, a better way of saying this would be, "Pursued but not abandoned." The fourth thought is still more vivid and dramatic.  The enemy has overtaken him, has struck him, has knocked him down.  But it is not a fatal blow; he is able to rise again.  It might be said, "Overthrown but not overcome." And at last, death itself is considered."Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus."  But he does not die, for "the life of Jesus" now comes to his aid and he lives in the life of another until his life work is done. The reason so many fail in this experience of divine healing is because they expect to have it all without a struggle, and when the conflict comes and the battle wages long, they become discouraged and surrender.  God has nothing worth having that is easy.  There are no cheap goods in the heavenly market.  Our redemption cost all that God had to give, and everything worth having is expensive.  Hard places are the very school of faith and character, and if we are to rise over mere human strength and prove the power of life divine in these mortal bodies, it must be through a process of conflict that may well be called the birth travail of a new life.  It is the old figure of the bush that burned, but was not consumed, or of the vision in the house of the interpreter of the flame that would not expire, notwithstanding the fact that the demon ceaselessly poured water on it, because in the background stood an angel ever pouring oil and keeping the flame aglow. No, dear suffering man of God, you cannot fail if only you dare to believe, to stand fast and refuse to be overcome. I share these words with you because as I have been on my personal journey for the past five years, I have continued to face the giants that I never imagined.  As I traveled across the world to Brazil and as I spent time with many men in California, I was blessed to experience that all of us men who are abiding in Christ and have been transformed are facing the giants.  I'm encouraged today that as we continue to be influencers to the world around us, we will continue to run to the battle line and fight the good fight.  I'm encouraged to say that the day will come when we all stand before the throne of the One who gave it all and He will say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."  May these words be an encouragement to you, may you face your giants of life and know that as you "totally abandon yourself and have absolute trust", He will bring down the giants as David did Goliath. I'm amazed to hear the hearts of ordinary men who have been facing their giants for so long and have found victory.  Yes, these men have found victory as they have learned to get into close proximity to the Father.  These men have picked up their cross and have followed Him.  It is absolutely evident that God is moving in a mighty way in the lives of men across this nation and around the world to be Influencers for His kingdom. Faithfully submitted, Frank Khalil Influencers Cabinet Member