Biker Bible Institute

GOD STRENGTHENS US.........

The strength we possess as humans is limited. No matter how many self-help ideas we implement or positive statements we proclaim, our strength will only take us so far. That may discourage some, but hopefully, the truth we read from God’s Word will deposit hope in us instead.

In 2 Corinthians 12, the apostle Paul was sharing about a “thorn in his flesh” that continued to “torment” him. He actually pleaded and begged God to remove it. And each time God told him, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Think about that for a minute. God used this man to influence the early Church and take the gospel to numerous countries. And in his moment of weakness, he begs God to help him, and God basically says no. But God doesn’t stop there. God tells Paul that it’s when he’s weak that the perfect power of God is working best. Imagine that! We need to be weak to see God’s power work best. While we see weakness as a barrier, God is using it to uphold us. Our strength as humans may come to a certain level, but with God’s strength boosting us up, there is nothing we can’t endure!

We’re all either in a challenging season or will be in one soon. Life can either bring it gently, or it can hit like an unexpected tsunami. Regardless of how we enter into hard times, we’ll have to learn how to walk through them. We have to rely on God’s help, because what we possess on our own just isn’t sufficient. We need God’s strength.

So, when we’re in a trial where we have our own “thorn in the flesh,” we can derive power by admitting we can’t do it on our own and calling out to God. As we navigate the fiery trials in our lives, it’s an opportunity for our faith to be proven genuine. It’s a chance for God’s strength to strengthen us so that we will be “perfect and complete, needing nothing” (James 1:4).

GOD IS FOR US...............................

The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me? Psalm 118:6 NLT

If only we really believed this, right? We want to believe it. We try to believe it. We will ourselves to believe it. But we can get so frightened about what people, things, and circumstances around us can do to us that we forget Who is for us.

The Maker of Heaven and Earth is for us. (Psalm 146:6)
The King of Glory is for us. (Psalm 24:8)
The Sovereign Lord is for us. (Psalm 68:19-20)
The Creator of the universe is for us. (Genesis 1:1)
Our Great God is for us. (Psalm 95:3)
The Most High is for us. (Psalm 91:1)
Our Compassionate Lord is for us. (Psalm 116:5)
The Prince of Peace is for us. (Isaiah 9:6)
The Healer is for us. (Psalm 147:3)
Our Unchanging Father is for us. (James 1:17)
The Promises Keeper is for us. (2 Peter 3:9)
The Ultimate Forgiver is for us. (1 John 1:9)
When we remember who God is and what He’s done, we’ll be more likely to walk with hope when things are threatening to overwhelm us.

What we fill ourselves up with every day is important. When we fill our minds with the truth from God’s Word, we’ll become so acquainted with it that when we’re faced with something that isn’t true, we’ll know. When we worship God through song or praise Him while looking at His creation, it’ll build our spirits and will lift our focus from the daily trials we face. When we walk through life with like-minded followers of Jesus, there’s built in encouragement for us in our experiences with them.

So, let’s remember that God hasn’t given us a fearful mindset. He’s given us one that contains love, power, and a sound mind! God is our salvation and our fortress! Because when we remember and remind ourselves of the truth every day, we’ll stand strong knowing that when God is for us, nothing can be against us.

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GOD HAS GOOD PLANS............

We’re living in an unprecedented time as we navigate the life-threatening and economy-shaking struggles we’re facing because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the past, we’ve seen catastrophic diseases, disasters, and wars impact various countries, but this is different. At this time, the whole world has something in common: we’re trying to survive a deadly virus.

So, as followers of Jesus, how do we make sense of this? What do we do with our questions to God and our questions of God? How do we find good news in a continual stream of bad news? And how do we grasp how this fits into the all-familiar passage of Jeremiah 29:11?

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. (NLT)

This verse gives hope and is our spiritual security blanket in hard times. It’s printed on t-shirts, etched on coffee mugs, and stamped on greeting cards. While God is a hope giver, we have to understand the context of this cherished verse.

Jeremiah prophesied to the Israelites in the southern kingdom of Judah before they were taken captive in 586 BC by King Nebuchadnezzer of Babylon. In Jeremiah 27, he prophesied that they would serve this king, his son, and his grandson, and that everything would be under their control (Jeremiah 27:6-7 NLT).

In the next chapter, a false prophet named Hananiah told the people that God would free them and restore everything to them in two years. Jeremiah challenged Hananiah because of his lies. He also said Hananiah would die and in two months, he was dead.

In chapter 29, Jeremiah encourages the people to live their lives while they’re in exile—to work, marry, plant, eat, and multiply! He tells them they’ll be in Babylon for 70 years and then, they’ll be brought home again.

God’s plans of a hope and a future for His chosen people probably didn’t match what their idea was. They wanted to go home, yet God said it would be 70 years. They wanted their own king, yet God said they would serve the Babylonian king. They wanted to flourish in their homeland, but God said to do that under a government that was holding them captive. Possibly the hardest part was that the older generation would never go back home. They would die in a foreign land serving a foreign king.

We can’t insist on our idea of a bright and hopeful future. We tend to be short-sighted and earthly-minded. But God’s ways are so much higher than what our minds can grasp. His plan is better! And it will include forever with Him in heaven, not just a short portion of our lives on earth.

If our hope is laced with doubt, fear and anxiety, we can change that today. We need to eliminate our“hope-so” attitude and replace it with a “know-so” mindset. Our hope should never be tethered to the conveniences and pleasures the world offers or the ease of a situation. Instead, we fasten our minds to the promises and truths in the Word of God and fix our sights on the day when our bright, glorious, and eternal future is made a reality. Instead of wishing away our days in the predicament we’re in, let’s have confidence that God will deposit hope into us no matter what we’re facing.