HOW TO WIN THE VICTORY
Text- 1 Samuel 7:1-11
Introduction
In a national newspaper there was a cartoon that showed a girl sitting at her office desk saying to herself, "Today I am going to start my diet." The next picture in the cartoon shows her looking at her watch with a concerned expression on her face saying, "I wonder how long I'll be able to stay on my diet this time?" On the wall behind her there is a clock that shows it is 8:00. Finally in the last picture she is seen running down the hall towards the candy machine buying and eating as many candy bars as she can. On the wall behind her there is a clock that shows it is 8:05.
Just the word "diet" can bring back painful memories, especially when you add to it exercising.
Erma Bombeck once said concerning her battle with the bulge, "I'm not telling you how much I weigh, but when I measure my girth and then step onto the scales, I ought to be a 90 foot redwood.”
When we finally get sick and tired of our flab and the zippers ripping out of our clothes and the buttons popping off of our shirts, we decide its time to lose weight. In our zeal, on the first day we cut our calories from 5000 to 700 a day, we eat diet food until we think we are going to gag and then start jogging like we're on fire. By the third day however we are so sore we can't even run a half a block. Before too long we have completely given up the idea of dieting and when the desire to exercise comes over us again, we just lie down until the urge goes away.
While it is good for us to be strong and healthy physically, it is even more important for us to be strong and healthy spiritually in our relationship with God. Yet, getting fit spiritually is one of the greatest challenges we will ever face as children of God.
But, until we are spiritually strong we can not expect to be victorious in our walk with God. So, this morning our text is found in 1 Samuel 7:1-11 and the title of my message is, "How To Win The Victory".
As we examine this passage of Scripture I would like us to focus our attention specifically on four requirements mentioned in verse three that will help us win the victory.
1 Samuel 7:3 And Samuel said to the whole house of Israel, "If you are returning to the Lord with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines." (NIV)