In our Focal Scripture, God had told the children of Israel not to fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land they dwelt. So Israel not only had mere physical enemies to deal with; they also had gods of the land where they dwelt. They were also faced with altars that were contrary to the God they served. They had altars of darkness hovering in the land where they dwelt. They had negative spiritual forces to contend with.
Friend, if there be gods of the land where you dwell, now is the time to show forth the power of God at work in you. Now is the time to arise in prayers and tear down the forces of darkness around you. Now is the time to show who is truly boss, whether it be you, or the gods of the land where you dwell. Now is the time to alter the spiritual atmosphere around you to conform to Jesus. Now is the time to go ballistic on the forces of hell.
If Jesus has redeemed you, then you belong to the generation that stops the forces of darkness. You belong to the generation that cuts down the altars of darkness. You belong to the generation that does not allow the gates of hell to prevail. You belong to the generation that scatters the satanic arrangements whether it affects you or not. You belong to the generation that should strip the enemy of his influence.
You did not hear about the altars of hell around you so that you can be afraid of them. You heard about them so that you can scatter them. You heard about the forces of darkness so that you can put them to flight. You heard about the gates of hell so that you can dismantle them the same way Samson dismantled and lifted up the gates of the Philistines. Your duty to every altar of darkness is to ensure that it is burnt down in prayers.
Discard the fear of the tin gods and mini altars around you and start burning them down with your prayers. Remember, you were raised to destroy the altars of darkness.