Mensa Otabil - The Lord is Our Strength (09/28/2025)
It’s good for us to know where our strength comes from. How do you determine the source of your strength? The psalmist says in Psalm 18, verse 32, «It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.» Strength has to do with the ability to either apply pressure to move something or the ability to withstand something. So, when we say somebody is strong, they’re able to move things or nothing moves them. We need strength in our lives; we need strength for the tasks ahead of us. We need spiritual strength, mental strength, and physical strength. But where do you get your strength from? When you start your day going out, how do you determine whether you’re strong today or not?
When I was a child, we determined who was stronger by flexing our biceps, and our friends would size up our biceps to see how tense our muscles were. Then they would tell us whether we were strong or not. Is that how you determine your strength? The writer of this 18th Psalm is David, who was a shepherd, a warrior, and a king. David was a strong military person; we know him because he defeated Goliath. But beyond that, he also led many military incursions and was successful almost all the time.
So, where did David get all his strength from when he was a teenager fighting lions, bears, giants, and armies? David says it is God who arms him with strength. After winning all the major battles of life, David concludes that his strength did not come from his military abilities or his muscles, or even his education or training. It is the Lord who arms him with strength. The same God that David talks about—who armed him with strength—is your God. He is the same God you have come to believe in; He is the same God you have come to trust. He is the same God you call your God. The God of David is also your God, so you can also say, «It is the Lord who arms me with strength.»
I don’t know what battles you are facing, but the Lord will arm you with strength, and He will give you victory as He did for David. He arms us with strength through His Holy Spirit. He arms us with strength through His Holy Word. As we fellowship with the Holy Spirit, as we take in His Word, His strength becomes our strength. He answers us with strength through the gifts and talents that He imparts to us.
There are many things in life that may make us feel weak, but the Holy Spirit, the Word of God, and the gifts that God has given to us liberally and freely are the gifts that will enable us to fight our battles and win. So, when you go out today into the battlefield, when you see enemies that are bigger than you, when you are struggling to overcome, remember it is the Lord who arms you with strength, and the same God of David will see you through. That’s why I’m very confident that you’re going to win your battles; that’s why I’m very confident that you are born to win, and that’s why I’m very confident that you will never lose in this life. God arms you with strength. Go into the day with full confidence, knowing that the Lord will arm you with strength.
Pastor Mensa Otabil, Shalom—peace and life to you!