This is how God does it

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Renewed hope”

Our Bible verse for today: “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “This is how God does it”

In yesterday’s devotional we thought about how it is that God is a “force multiplier” in our lives. In other words, when we invite God into our situations and ask for His help, His involvement in our situations changes everything. From that point forward we’re no longer dealing with it in our own wisdom and in our own power, but instead the wisdom and power of God has been added to ours and that creates possibilities that didn’t exist before. That then renews our hope that things are going to be okay.

The Bible passage we thought about which teaches that great truth was Isaiah 40:30-31 which reads, “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.” Mature Christians know this to be true from personal experience. When we bring God into our situations, He renews our strength and gives us hope. It can then seem as if we are now soaring through or above our problems, as if we had wings like an eagle.

But why is that true? Functionally, how does God do that for us? Isaiah answers that in the very next chapter of his book, in Isaiah 41:10, “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with my righteous right hand.” That’s the answer. The tangible sense of God’s presence drives out fear. That happens because God is there. He is with us right there in the middle of the situation and He is also giving us strength we didn’t have before. He is also helping us in ways we don’t even understand and might not be aware of, like holding us up when we might otherwise fall.

This is where our renewed hope comes from. This is how it is gained. We stop trying to deal with things in our own understanding and in our own power and we rely on God instead – and we do so with intentionality and in a very targeted and specific way. We pray about it with passion; we mediate on Bible verses that speak directly to our situation; we get good counsel from trusted friends and spiritual leaders; and we also take action and do what we can to deal with the situation. But through it all, our focus is on God. He is our strength. He is our helper. It is His strength that is holding us up.

As we learned yesterday, when we’re dealing with difficult issues in life if we turn to God and rely on Him, it becomes possible for us to soar as if we had wings like an eagle – and now we know how God does that for us.

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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