Bible Passage: “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.” (Zechariah 4:6)
Scripture Reading: Judges 16:1-31
The 2026 FIFA World Cup Tournament recently concluded with Spain coming out on top. They dominated their Argentinian opponents despite facing the arguably best player in soccer, Lionel Messi. Commentators noted that Spain was the better team throughout the final match.
Who doesn’t want to be the better team? The strongest? The fastest? The smartest? The most creative?
Men seem to want that so bad that our lives can revolve around it.
And then we either live with the frustration of failure or the shockingly short-lived glory of victory.
But we still keep driving for it.
And while I’m all for being the best a man can be, it can be easy to forget where all of that ability comes from.
Consider Samson.
This dude was tough. A young lion attacked him, and he tore it apart with his bare hands. He took on thirty men, stealing the very clothes off their backs. He captured three hundred foxes. He beat up a thousand men with the jawbone of an ass.
But Samson forgot something very significant about his immense strength. The writer of Judges makes special note of it.
When Samson is about to perform one of his mighty acts of strength, the text says that the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully on him (e.g., Judges 14:6, etc.).
Tragically, Samson began to take this for granted. He began to do whatever he wanted to, supposing that his strength was his alone; he failed to acknowledge that it came from the Lord.
Inevitably, this led to his demise.
Men, this applies directly to us as well. Maybe you were the top student in your final year at university. Maybe you are the best running back on your football team. Maybe you can shred on the guitar better than anyone you know. Maybe your bank account is heftier than all your competitors.
This only happens because God allows it to happen.
Where do you think your mind and your body came from? Where did that desire to work hard come from? Where did all those opportunities come from? All men are dependent on God for their every breath (Acts 17:25).
Turn from pride and truly acknowledge that everything you have comes from the Lord.
Fear the Lord and recognize that your abilities come from Him.
Prayer: Dear Lord, I like to win. I like to be the best. I like to be honored. It gives me the false sense that I am better than someone else. I want to use my strengths and abilities to glorify myself. But You gave me these abilities to glorify You. I am sorry that I have tried to steal Your glory. Forgive me. Have mercy on me. Help me to surrender all my talents to You, to develop them by Your grace to their fullest potential, and then to use all of them to worship You. Only You are worthy. Amen.
Reflection: List out the things that you are particularly good at. Thank the Lord for His generosity to you in giving you those gifts. Confess where you have forgotten your utter dependence on Him. Surrender all that you are to Him so that He might be given the praise that He is due. Amen.
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