Bird River Bible Blog

Hey sports fans. It’s play-off season now in the NHL. Are you excited? I wouldn’t call myself a hockey fan (I actually refused corporate seats to a Canucks game once, hahaha). But, I do know a good number of obsessive hockey fans who like to get very involved in the game, especially during play-off season. I was listening to the radio and two show hosts were having a conversation about what length fans will go to during play-offs, to root for their favorite team. Some people paint their face, a lot of guys refuse to shave their beard, some people wear the same hat while watching the game. On this particular radio show, some of the habits people shared, verged on the absolute ridiculous. Why do fans do this to themselves? Well a lot if not most of them do it because they believe that what their doing brings luck to the team. If they religiously wear the same hat every time, maybe the stars in the universe will align and their favorite team will win their game. Pick up a penny, rub the rabbit’s foot, find a four-leaf clover, hang a horseshoe upside down over the doorway…all these are supposed to bring luck to the person who takes the action.

I’ll use phrases like, “It’s your lucky day!” or “You’re so lucky!” But to be honest, I don’t believe in actual luck. Know why? Because when I read my Bible, I don’t see any evidence of luck. When I look at how all the stories in the Bible line up, I can see that God was a part of each story and each one was a part of his larger plan. In Jeremiah 29:11-13, God said, “I know what I am planning for you. I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future. Then you will call my name. You will come to me and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will search for me. And when you search for me with all your heart, you will find me!” Isn’t that incredible?!? I find it so awesome to know that my future is in the hands of the Eternal Father, rather than left to luck that a penny I picked up off the ground might hold.

You made my whole being; you formed me in my mother’s body. I praise you because you made me in an amazing and wonderful way. What you have done is wonderful. I know this very well. You saw my bones being formed as I took shape in my mother’s body. When I was put together there, you saw my body as it was formed. All the days planned for me were written in your book before I was one day old. Psalm 139:13-16

One time when I was watching the news, they did a human interest story on a lady who worked at Value Village and found a whole lot of cash in a ratty old purse. I think it was around $400 or something. Of course in the end the lady did the right thing and hunted down the lady who had donated the purse, returning all that cash to her and that’s why they were doing this news report on her. The story warmed my heart, but it also got me wondering what I would do in that situation. Well, since then, I’ve been to several second-hand stores, and I often think to myself, “I wonder… if I stick my hand in the pocket of this purse, will I pull out a wad of cash?”

There’s a verse found in II Corinthians 4:7 that says, But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

In terms of who I am as a Christian, I am that clay jar. That treasure in the jar of clay (or, if you’d rather, that wad of cash in that ratty old purse), is Christ in me. I am weak and easily broken. I appear to be insignificant. There are stories in the Bible told of many individuals who seemed weak and insignificant. The author who wrote II Corinthians, Paul, wrote many of the books found in the New Testament. They were written as letters to different cities. In some of those letters, Paul refers to some weakness that he has. Even though we never hear for sure what Paul’s weakness was, it’s been suggested that he may have had anything from bad eye sight to a speech impediment. However, Paul, while referring to his weakness, was also able to boast in the power found through God. Paul knew, that if he was a perfect person, without any weaknesses, he would probably be tempted to a) boast about himself as if it were his own doing and b) forget to praise God for making him who he is and c) forget to lean entirely on God for strength to do the things he was doing (traveling around that world, sharing the Good News of God’s incredible love!). For me, I know that when I am at my weakest, tiredest moments, God is totally able to shine that much brighter and I will know that I am only able to do what I’m doing because of God’s strength in me.

I begged the Lord three times to take this problem away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is enough for you. When you are weak, my power is made perfect in you.” So I am very happy to brag about my weaknesses. Then Christ’s power can live in me. For this reason I am happy when I have weaknesses, insults, hard times, sufferings, and all kinds of troubles for Christ. Because when I am weak, then I am truly strong. II Corinthians 12:8-10