Welcome back to BJA! I trust that your time away was refreshing. It certainly was for my family and me. Each day I spent some time studying Judges. I have shared some thoughts with the BJA faculty and staff and would like to share them with you as well.
Judges was written in a time when the nation of Israel was not wholeheartedly following God. In many ways, conditions were similar to what we see today. But, now as then, God raises up individuals of faith who are committed to obeying and serving Him and, therefore, to making a difference in the lives of others. This is my prayer and challenge to the BJA team for this year—that we maintain our focus on Christ and not ourselves. The intensity of the enemy has only continued and increased. We must live each day with a renewed faith in our incomparable God.
In speaking of Gideon, Warren Wiersbe cites three important principles of faith—God tests our faith, God encourages our faith, and God honors our faith. Allow me to string together several quotations from his book Be Available that stood out to me while reading the commentary.
“Victories won because of faith bring glory to God because nobody can explain how they happened.”
“People who live by faith know their own weakness more and more as they depend on God’s strength.”
“Pride after the battle robs God of glory, and fear during the battle robs God’s soldiers of courage and power….Fear and faith can’t live together very long in the same heart.”
“Numbers are no guarantee of God’s blessing.”
“Faith means more than simply trusting God; it also means seeking God and wanting to please Him.”
“Faith sees the invisible (victory in a battle not yet fought) and does the impossible (wins the battle with few men and peculiar weapons).”
“It has been said that the good news of the gospel is we don’t have to stay the way we are.”
“The important thing is for us to be available for God to use just as He sees fit. We may not fully understand His plans but we can fully trust His promises, and it’s faith in Him that gives the victory.”
There will be many opportunities in the new semester when we face the fierceness of the battle. But, let’s not sin by complaining. Let’s fight on with faith no matter how overwhelming the enemy and how seemingly insignificant our weapons. May God give us eyes of faith to see His strength and wisdom and power and might. Then, we will rejoice in the victories He gives.
Together, let us pray for the growth of our students that they might be “strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.”
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