God is a force multiplier

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Renewed hope”

Our Bible verse for today: “Youths may become faint and weary, and young men stumble and fall, but those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength; they will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not become weary, they will walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:30-31 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “God is a force multiplier”

In my opinion, Colin Powell was a great American, and a one of the greatest military leaders of his generation. He rose to the rank of four-star General in the Army, served as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (the senior military leader in the country), and he was the Secretary of State under President George W. Bush. He was widely admired and respected across the political spectrum and internationally.

General Powell had a list of leadership principles he developed, lived by, and taught. He called them “Powell’s Principles.” One of those principles stated that “Optimism is a force multiplier.” “Force multiplier” is a military term that refers to elements that can be brought to bear upon a situation that strengthen your force and enhance the likelihood of victory. They are often intangibles like good morale, a sense of loyalty, trust in leadership, good planning, and other factors that help to enhance the effectiveness of your primary assets like personnel and weapons.

According to Powell, based on decades of successful leadership, optimism is one of those force multipliers. Optimistic soldiers who expect good outcomes fight better than do pessimistic soldiers. Optimism is a force multiplier. That’s true in the Army when applied to soldiers, it’s true in life in general, and it certainly applies to Christians. An optimistic attitude makes a huge difference in how we approach life.

In Isaiah 40:30-31 Isaiah wrote about another force multiplier for the people of God – it is God Himself. That may seem like a no-brainer, like something that is so obvious it doesn’t need to be stated. But it does need to be stated because so many Christians do not immediately turn to God for help. Instead, we often approach life and our problems in our own wisdom and in our own power. We may give God a cursory thought, we might mutter a quick prayer under our breath and then go right on dealing with it ourselves, but how often do we stop, drop, and really pray about it?

When you turn to God, rely on Him, and draw your strength from Him, it improves your attitude and gives you hope you didn’t have before. Now you are soaring instead of struggling, optimistic instead of pessimistic, and much more likely to experience good outcomes instead of bad.

God is a force multiplier. Turn to Him; give your situation to Him; don’t try to do this on your own.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00, in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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