1 Sam 30:8 So David inquired of the LORD, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?” And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.”

Every February, businesses and entrepreneurs alike, flood stores, internet and even the busiest street corners with red roses, plush teddy bears, sweet chocolate and many other tokens representing love and affection.  Unfortunately for many, all of these romantic trinkets will not do anything to mend the hurt, anger and hate that have filled the hearts of so many spouses.   Statistics show that well over 70% of marriages fail and a majority of pre-marital relationships seldom end in matrimony.  The fact is, our enemy the devil, is attacking relationships.  He always has and always will.  The sad thing is that he is not always working solo.  Many have made poor choices that have opened the door for him to enter into relationships and wreak havoc in the lives of so many families.

My wife and kids mean so much to me and I can assure you that if I lost them my LIFE would be drastically impaired.  Divorce is an unbearable reality that many families are dealing with today.  David had an unbearable reality to deal with, but the Lord used his situation to give us wisdom to help many marriages today.  David along with his mighty men returned to their families in Ziklag only to find that the Amalekites had ravaged their homes taking captive their wives and children.  An enemy had literally just destroyed their lives.  David lost everything and the very people he led were ready to kill him.  He was devastated and downtrodden but he had a decision to make.

This February, you too have a decision to make!!  Will you sit back while the enemy steals, kills and destroys your family?  While the enemy picks apart the life you and your spouse have built together, will you sit in disappointment and disbelief or will you follow David’s example and “FIGHT TO GET YOUR LIFE BACK”.  Let’s see what he did.

1. Strengthened Himself:  vs 6 … But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God. This familiar verse is quoted often and there’s a great reason for it.  David was devastated; he was at his lowest point and David had many low points in his life.  Many people going through serious marital problems often find themselves feeling as low as David did.  David understood that he was dealing with something that no counselor, friend or family member was going to be able to help with.  He had to get his strength from the only source that gives power.  Jesus is waiting for us to tap into His power and strength.  Marriages need Jesus in their center, that is the bottom line.  Regardless of the situation your marriage is in, you can gain strength by trusting in Jesus and walking in the strength He has given you.
2. Worshiped His Savior:  vs 7 Then David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech’s son, “Please bring the ephod here to me.” And Abiathar brought the ephod to David.  After David was strengthened he went right into worship.  He later donned the linen ephod which was worn originally by the High Priest then by ordinary priests.  They wore it before going into the temple to worship so David wore it so that he could worship the Lord.  David was all out of sorts and confused yet realized that before he could do anything about this situation, he needed to worship the Lord.  Worship is focusing our affection on Jesus.  When we do that we cannot think about or even see anything but Jesus and His amazing Love for us.  Stop looking at the faults of your spouse…worship the Lord.  Rather than trying to fix things that you don’t know how to…worship the Lord.  Worship Jesus and get your focus back.  Remember who God is, all that He has done for you, how much He loves you and all that He is able to do.  When we worship, we place our focus on our solution (Jesus).
3. Inquired Direction:  vs 8 So David inquired of the LORD, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?”.…  After David worshiped he was ready to get God’s direction.  Now that David’s focus was clear, he needed to know what to do next.  In marriage we often ask everyone else (other people who have their own problems), before we ask the One who has all of the solutions.  Jesus knows what we need to do, when we need to do it and just how it needs to be done.  Inquire of the Lord and ask about your next step in marriage.  Ask about what you should learn, how you can be better, how can you love better, how can you serve better. Whatever you need to know, ask Jesus first.  After all “we have not because we ask not.”
4. Pursued His Enemy:  vs 8 …And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.” 10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men…  When David got the word from God, he took immediate action.  You see he asked God what to do and God told him to pursue.  Pursue means to go after with vigor, chase or persecute.  God, in essence, told David to fight; fight for his family and the very life which had just been destroyed.  This is the same word for you today.  Don’t let the enemy get away with the destruction he has caused, FIGHT.  Why?  God told David to fight in answer to the question he asked, but the Lord being omnipotent also answered a question that David did not ask: why he should fight?  “My life will be better without them.” “They are not willing to work so why should I?”  “Is it even worth it?”  These are all questions that will often come right after Jesus prompts us to fight for our marriages.  Since He knew this, He gave the answer in advance.  The Lord said “for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.”  Without fail, because Jesus is with you everything will be recovered:  the love of your life, your best friend, the intimacy both physically and emotionally;  it will all be recovered.  You will get everything back, just trust the Lord to do the heavy lifting on your behalf.  You believe, Jesus will achieve and in the end you and your spouse will be relieved (I could not resist).
5. Triumphed Beyond Victory: vs 20 Then David took all the flocks and herds they had driven before those other livestock, and said, “This is David’s spoil.”  After David recovered everything that had been stolen by the enemy, he realized that God had given him more.  When we triumph with God, it is always exceedingly and abundantly more than we can imagine.  David not only recovered all that he lost, but he received extra (some would say he got his with interest).  The text states Then David took all the flocks and herds they had driven before those other livestock, and said, “This is David’s spoil.”  Jesus always leaves us better off, than we originally were, in David’s case, he received the spoil.  In your case, you marriage will be more exciting, intimate and stronger than it ever was.  You and your children will become closer and more transparent as well.  You can trust God like David did, he triumphed beyond victory, regaining everything that he lost and more.  Trust Him….and recover your better life.

Conclusion: This February make up in your mind that you will believe the Lord and FIGHT, as you do you will recover all.  You will be better, your marriage, your children, even those around you will benefit.  Remember this; it is not your actions that are changing your situation, but the actions of Jesus Christ on Calvary’s Cross years ago.  Victory was given to us all when He defeated death and Satan by standing in our place.  You can rest assured that what He did was more than enough for us to have victory, as we FIGHT for our marriages and families.  FIGHT FOR YOUR LIFE TODAY!!