Garrison your victory

Then he put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom he put garrisons, and all the Edomites became David’s servants. And the Lord gave victory to David wherever he went. 

2 Samuel 8:14 (ESV)

I read this and wondered, why does this section repeat the fact that David put garrisons in Edom? If something is said more than once, i figure it must be Important. Firstly I wondered what a garrison was, in case, like me you weren't sure either, Garrisons are groups of soldiers stationed in an area, to guard and protect it. 

So, basically what has happened is David and his army have overcome the area of Edom, and to ensure the sustained victory over the area, there are now groups of soldiers assigned to guard the it. 

This caused me to consider, when I have a victory in my life, do I protect that achievement? Do I protect the ground that I have overcome? Do I seek to protect the progress I made? Do you?

David was a mighty king, a conqueror and a man of God, he knew that some areas of his victory needed to be protected. He understood that if he didn't protect the ground he'd taken, the enemy could swoop in again and take the ground and maybe even take more ground. David wanted to ensure that his victory was secure. Do you do the same? 

Life has ups and downs, times where we fail and when we achieve. Do you make a point of securing your victory? 

Do you remember the last time you overcame something? When you were proud of something you achieved? 

I find sometimes that when one area of my life is going well, something usually crops up somewhere else that can knock me back. It can cause me to lose sight of the good things and make me focus on the knock. 

It can take a lot of strength to 'garrison' the success. We need to remember that although the enemy exists, the ground is ours. 

We can protect ourselves. It could be by written down answered prayers. I've started listing things I'm praying for and then I can look back and see what God has done, I'm looking forward to seeing what God has answered. He's already answered some and I am glad we have asked for prayer on those things because it's a reminder that although other areas are difficult, the success is garrisoned. We have taken ground and the enemy is not welcome to crawl back in. We can claim God's movement in our lives, recall what he has done in us and for us. It's good to have a record of these things because it's so easy to be blinded by what isn't done. What area of your life do you need to garrison? Maybe you need to tell a trusted friend about a success so they can remind you, maybe it's a journal or post-it's of God's goodness.

Like David did, don't forget to garrison your victory!