See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. (Zech. 9:9)
“A WORLD WAR II chaplain once said, ‘Battles are won by military power, but wars are won by spiritual power.’* I wonder if you believe that,” Jack Huffman asked the congregation. “I can tell you, I didn’t. As a major serving in the US Marine Corps, I believed in God. But the moment we faced our enemy, I believed military power was everything.”
He shook his head in disbelief and went on.
“The Bible says, ‘The Sovereign Lord will sound the trumpet; he will march in the storms of the south’ (Zech. 9:14). That’s how I see Him—as our Military Commander, reigning in absolute power. He wins every battle. He fixes every problem. He expects us to do the same. Or so I thought.
“Last week,” Jack paused, his voice softer, “our daughter Julie went to rehab for the sixth time. I have never faced a problem I can’t fix—until now. What could I do but get on my knees and beg the Lord to come in power and rescue my daughter?
“But I know too much,” Jack said, visibly shaken. “Too often He doesn’t come to save on a war horse, but a donkey. Not in power, but humility. I need your prayers. I don’t know how to trust Him, not now, not for my Julie. I need your help—because I can’t fix this one.”
Ask God to fix the unfixable in a way that brings honor to Him.
* Lyle W. Dorsett, Serving God and Country (New York: Berkley Caliber, 2012), 3, 6.
Thaddeus Barnum is the author of the devotionals Real IdentityandReal Love(WPH), as well as a pastor in Connecticut.