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“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1).

They call him the man of steel. Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, Superman is the ultimate strong and powerful superhero. As long as there’s none of that nasty green Kryptonite nearby to suck away his strength, Superman can do whatever it takes to rescue people in any kind of danger. And not only does he fly and have incredible strength, but he also seems to use his powers, not to make himself look good, but to help other people.

We love Superman because we know we need a hero: someone who knows when we need help, is powerful enough to be able to help us, and cares enough to want to help. In the comic books and on TV, Superman does all of those things. But he doesn’t do any of them perfectly. For example, he knows when people need help—but only because he hears about it from someone else. He is powerful enough to help people—but only in one place at a time. If a child were being kidnapped on one side of Metropolis at the exact same moment that a woman’s car was being stolen on the other side of the city, he would have to choose to help either the child or the woman. He couldn’t do both, even if he wanted to.

Superman is a good hero, but he is only a man—and not even a real man, just a pretend character in comic books and in movies. He is only a fictional imitation of the one Hero we all truly need: a God who knows everything, who can do anything He wants to, and who loves His children perfectly. That God is our refuge: we can run to Him for shelter when we’re facing something scary or painful. He is our strength: we can call on Him when we are weak. He is always near when we are in trouble: He doesn’t have to fly to where we are, because He’s already there. We can count on Him to be our ultimate Hero.

God, our refuge and strength, is better than any make-believe superhero.

My response:

» Do I turn to God for help when I am in trouble, or do I try to solve my problems by myself?

“Who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 7:24b–25a).

Have you ever had a dream where you were trying to run away from someone or something scary like a monster, and you just couldn’t run fast enough, or you tripped and fell while you were running? It seems like the dream goes on and on and on. You are just about ready to be captured by the big, ugly creature when you hear your mom calling you for breakfast. What a relief!

Many times, believers can face struggles with sin, when they feel as if they just can’t overcome it. Some believers know they shouldn’t be angry and hateful, but being angry and hateful happens so easily to them. Other believers want to tell others about the gospel, but when they have an opportunity to do just that, they just freeze in fear, and the opportunity slips by.

If you can identify with either of these, take heart! The apostle Paul faced a similar situation. He wrote, “For the good that I would, I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do” (Romans 7:19).

This doesn’t sound fun at all. It is a difficult situation to be in as a believer. Believers know that obeying God is their first priority as a child of God. But there is a part inside that still wants to sin, and it is strong. This struggle wasn’t there before the believer put faith in Christ, but now the struggle gets intense sometimes. Take heart; Paul faced this very same struggle too!

Paul described himself as a “wretched man” because of his inability to do what was right. He asked, “Who shall deliver me the body of this death?” Then he said that the solution is to thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord because God is bigger than your toughest sin. Trust Him and thank Him.

God is bigger than your toughest sin. You may not be strong enough, but He is.

My response:

» Do I believe that God is bigger than the toughest sin that can ever tempt me?

» How can I trust Him to help me obey?

“This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5).

Have you ever toured a cave? The large ones that have big tours keep a lighting system going so visitors can see the beauty of the rock formations. Then to show how deep under the earth’s surface everyone is, the lights are turned off. Pitch black darkness. No one can see a thing. The darkness is so thick it almost takes a person’s breath away. Suddenly the lights are turned back on and people are able to see again.

Light gives us the ability to see. When light reflects, or bounces off, an object, it bounces into our eyes, and we are able to see that object. Light travels at approximately 186,282 miles per second. When light passes through a prism, the colors split into a rainbow. When a candle is lit or a flashlight shines in a dark room, the light pushes out the darkness.

First John 1:5 makes it clear that God is light. When He shines in our lives, it reflects out for others to see. His light transforms us and we show His glory. God’s light allows us to see truth.

The light of God pushes out the darkness of sin. There is no room for darkness when light shines. There is no room for sin when God shines in us. By filling our lives and our minds with God’s Word, we push out the darkness of sin.

Living in the Light (God) leaves no room for darkness (sin).

My response:

» Am I filling my mind with the word of God?

» Am I thinking about the truth of Who God is?

“Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers” (Ephesians 4:29).

We had seen her getting off the bus. Some kids laughed and pointed at her. Most just stared. Her brother and sister had walked on either side of her as if to protect her. Now she stood at the front of my classroom. Our teacher smiled, put her hands on the girl’s shoulders, told us her name, and welcomed her.

It took courage for the new girl to come to school, and it took more courage for her to stand in front of us. She was a little person—someone with a condition called “dwarfism” which causes them to be much smaller and shorter than others. Except in the movies, we had never seen a little person before. Over the years that girl taught my classmates and me a lot about acceptance and humility.

God made everyone, and He loves what He made. Not everyone looks the same. We do not all think the same. It is easy to make fun of and talk about someone who is different from us. But God wants us to use all our words to help others.

God wants us to be kind. He wants our words to be kind too.

My response:

» Are my words kind?

» Do I point or stare at people who are different from me, or do I make them feel welcome and accepted?

“God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).

Nouns are interesting things. A noun is a word that names a person, place, thing, or idea. While it’s easy to recognize a noun when it’s used in a sentence, nouns are really more like ideas than actual things. I can’t hold a noun, or smell it, or taste it, or hear it, or see it. Nouns are funny that way.

God is not an idea, but He is a spirit. You cannot hold Him, see Him, or hear Him. He is not the same as us. Because He is spirit, He can be everywhere at the same time.

So how does a human have a relationship with a being that is spirit? John 4:24 answers that question. We worship. We worship in spirit. We worship in truth. God has given us a spirit so we can talk to Him and worship Him in spirit. God has a plan and a purpose. He made us with the purpose of worshiping Him. We worship His Spirit through our spirit.

Worshiping in spirit is not an emotion. But emotions may be present. Worshiping in spirit comes from the deepest part of who we are. We worship with the whole heart. This comes as we know God’s Word and desire to obey Him. Even when we fail, we confess our sins and receive God’s forgiveness, and then worship Him more, since we have experienced so much forgiveness.

God is Spirit, and He deserves our worship.

My response:

» Am I worshiping God?

» Am I worshiping in spirit?

» Am I learning from God’s Word Who God is so I can worship Him?