5TH WEEK OF LENT

The Lord is with me, like a mighty champion.

“Terror on every side!” That’s how Jeremiah’s enemies mimicked his words (20:10). They accused him of needlessly stirring up fear among the people by talking about God’s coming judgment. The gossip and slander they spread around the court in Jerusalem made life dangerous for the prophet. But Jeremiah didn’t back down. He had entrusted his life to God, and he knew that God would be his champion and keep him safe.

God is indeed a mighty champion for all of us—not just in life-and-death situations like Jeremiah’s, but in our everyday “dangers” as well. He is with the husband and wife who worry about keeping their children from harm, paying the bills, and spending quality time together. He is with the student struggling against peer pressure and bullying. He is with the lonely widower who has just received a troubling diagnosis and the prison inmate trying to change his life in brutal surroundings. Whatever battles we may be facing, God is our champion. He is ready to fight for us and defend us.

Sometimes, though, it’s hard to ask the Lord for help. We have been so conditioned by life to think we have to fight all by ourselves. We are told that religion is for the weak and that we should be strong enough to handle whatever comes our way. Or we have been told that it’s normal to live with a certain level of anxiety and worry and that only fools are happy all the time. We should just grow up and get used to our problems because life is unfair, and there’s nothing we can do about it.

Don’t listen to these voices! You have a God in heaven who cares for you and wants to do good for you. He is very near to you. He is eager to give you every grace and blessing, in his good time and according to his perfect wisdom. A true champion, he will take up your cause and give you his grace, his insights, and his guidance to help you through every challenge. You don’t have to walk this path alone!

“I love you, O Lord, my strength, . . . my rock, my fortress, my deliverer!” (Psalm 18:2, 3)

Jeremiah 20:10-13
Psalm 18:2-7
John 10:31-42