11 And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentiles: and the people fled from the Philistines. 

12 But he stood in the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines: and the LORD wrought a great victory.

II Samuel 23:11-12 (KJV)

A dear friend was impressed this morning to send me this passage of Scripture. What an encouragement and a confirmation it was to me. In two short verses, the Biblical writer tells of a man named Shammah. Soldiers from Philistia, ancient enemies of Israel, had invaded the land and were wreaking havoc. Shammah determined that although the enemy had seemingly advanced so far, the enemy would advance no further. Taking his stand in a “pea patch,” Shammah stood his ground alone against a force that must have appeared overwhelming. With the assistance of the Lord, a great victory was won, and the “pea patch” was saved.

We are not told in the pages of Scripture, but there well may have been those of Shammah’s acquaintance that questioned his determination to defend so doggedly a piece of ground they did not consider worth fighting for. But what may have seemed insignificant to others became extremely valuable to Shammah, so much so that he readily laid his life on the line to protect it from invaders that sought to destroy it.

Less than a year ago I became aware of depths of my assignment from the Lord that I had not fully realized or embraced. Though the Lord began to speak to me about the importance of being “relational” many years ago, it is just within the last year that those words from the Lord began to take on new life and meaning within me. And while I do not yet fully know the extent of every aspect of my assignment, I have come into a greater understanding of other aspects of God’s Purpose for me as well. One of the most important things we can do as members of the Body of Christ is to allow the Holy Spirit to unveil our “pea patch” to us, the assignment given us by the Sovereign election of the Lord.

Of course, once we have begun to recognize and embrace responsibility for our “pea patch,” we can be certain that there is an enemy who desires to contest every aspect of what God has called us to be and to do. The enemy will attack relationships, finances, and health (both emotional and physical) just to name a few, in an attempt to destroy your “pea patch.” He will fire arrows of doubt into your mind, endeavoring if possible, to make you question the already revealed Purposes of God. He will try to convince you that God must have changed His Mind from what He originally told you, and that you should abandon this “pea patch,” and search for greener pastures. When faced with such attacks against God-ordained covenant relationships and assignments, we must respond as did Shammah:

1. Shammah STOOD! Shammah planted his feet firmly upon his embraced assignment. He refused to be moved. That which CAN be shaken, WILL be shaken (Heb. 12:27). If you CAN quit, you WILL quit! If you CAN give up, you WILL give up! If you CAN retreat back to a more emotionally comfortable place, you WILL! If there is some carnal comfortable bridge you have not burned behind you, you WILL have the opportunity to retreat across it! Remember that Elisha killed the oxen and burnt the plow of former mentality paradigms at the call of Elijah. Yes there is a struggle oftentimes to maintain and progress in what God has given you, in the covenant relationships He has ordained in your life, and in what He has called you to do. Don’t retreat! Remember that in the midst of it all, we have the unfailing promise of God that those things that CANNOT be shaken will REMAIN!
2. Shammah DEFENDED! Shammah not only planted his feet on that part of his “promised land” that was being invaded by hostile forces, he set his mind, his faith, and even his body in preparation to actually engage the advancing enemy! Shammah laid everything on the line. Like Esther of old, he must have thought, “If I perish, I perish. But I will do so defending the PEOPLE God has assigned me, the POTENTIAL that God has revealed to me, and the PROMISED LAND where God has planted me!”
3. Shammah SLEW! Shammah not only engaged the invading enemy, he continued engaging them until their purpose of destruction was thwarted and their plan was no more. Those who attacked got more than they bargained for from the guy standing immovable in the middle of a “pea patch,” who refused to cede even one more inch of ground! Having done all to stand, we STAND (Eph. 6:13-14). One English translation carries the idea that “having overcome, we stand ready to overcome again.” There is no “stopping point” this side of Heaven. Yes, there is Divine Rest in Christ (Heb. 4:9-10). But resting in Him involves ceasing from our own mere human efforts to produce results, and relying on the Greater One Who indwells us to accomplish His Purposes through us. We will need to be ready to resist multiple attacks and multiple obstacles. I have made up my mind that MY “PEA PATCH” IS WORTH FIGHTING FOR! God-ordained relationships and God-ordained assignments that are part of my “Promised Land” will NOT be stolen so long as I am upon this earth. And remember that our weapons are not carnal (II Cor. 10:4), our armor comes from God Himself (Eph. 6:11), and our ultimate enemy is not flesh and blood (Eph. 6:12), but invading demonic entities intent on destroying what God has ordained. Never forget that “in Christ, we have been made more than conquerors (Rom. 8:37)! The enemy is already a defeated foe, and we are enforcing his defeat through the authority of the Name of Jesus Christ!
4. Shammah WON! Yet even though Shammah enjoyed the fruits of victory, all of the credit and all of the Glory is attributed to God, who empowered Shammah in the midst of the “pea patch.” The LORD wrought a great victory! As we plant ourselves in our God-ordained assignment, engage the enemy, and refuse to quit no matter how “comfortable” going back might appear, God will manifest great victory through us in the earth, and in the sight of those who need to know that God is still alive. Always remember that although there might be temporary “relief” in withdrawal, there can be NO lasting PEACE short of confronting and overcoming the enemy that is attacking our God-ordained covenant relationships, assaulting our motives, accusing our characters, and endeavoring, if possible, to deceive the very elect into questioning the accuracy of their original instruction and direction from the Lord.

Let me exhort you today to renew the commitment that “my God-given pea patch” is WORTH fighting for! The Lord spoke to me years ago about the “platform of relationships” that He was building in my life. Every one of the God-ordained covenant relationships that God has Sovereignly placed and confirmed in my life, whether primarily vertical or primarily horizontal, is extremely precious and valuable to me. Those relationships are WORTH fighting for! Every aspect of my God-ordained assignment in the earth is precious and valuable to me. That assignment is WORTH fighting for! For several days a couple weeks ago, I awoke aware of angelic beings zipping around on their various assignments from the Throne. I heard the word “mobilization.” Should we not as well “mobilize” in concert with the angels to go forward in the fulfillment of God’s Kingdom Purpose? Determine to defend and to hold on to ALL that God has placed in your life! Be Blessed!