Thursday, September 8, 2016

Phalanx (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)

Good morning ladies,

The word of the day is “phalanx.”  As a young boy, I grew up watching old Westerns and war movies with my father.  Whenever there was a big battle scene I was always intrigued at the way armies used to fight.  Because there were not long-range firearms or other means to beat your enemy from far away, armies were always forced to engage in close hand to hand combat.  I wondered what it might be like to experience something like that.  And in all of those movies, there is always a pretty common theme.  It was very important to stay together, and to always rally around one another to make sure that the army stayed in a cohesive unit during the fight.  In the Old Testament, we see King Solomon talk about this principle.

9 Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
~Ecc 4:9-12


My question is: who are the people in your life that help you fight the battles... you know, the ones who can help you to create a kind of phalanx of protection?  In this season of life you’re going to have new challenges, some of which you’ve never seen before.  Stuff is going to come at you from all sides.  It is important for you to associate with people that are like-minded.  Throughout the Bible we see that there is strength in numbers.  And in this passage, King Solomon imparts wisdom both to the people of his time, and to those of us today – timeless.  My prayer is that you grab a hold of one or two people close to you.  Let them know you are there for them, and that you need them on your side as well.

Praying for you,

MO