To the Ends of the Earth: Action – Catholic Men's Devotionals, Week 10 – Real Strength for Real Men

The LORD is my strength and my shield;

   in him my heart trusts;

so I am helped, and my heart exults,

   and with my song I give thanks to him.

 Psalm 28:7

Fear not, for I am with you,

   be not dismayed, for I am your God;

I will strengthen you, I will help you,

   I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.

 Isaiah 41:10

Remember not the former things,

   nor consider the things of old.

Behold, I am doing a new thing;

   now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?

 I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

Isaiah 43:18–19

Every man fails. We are fallen creatures, stained by sin and lost without a Savior. When we stumble on the road of life, we can live with the mistakes and allow them to destroy us,   or we can pick ourselves  up and  begin again. The road  to  recovery is never easy. When our strength is gone and the world seems against us, the path may be unclear. But there is a way we can go.

The 1986 sports film Hoosiers (Orion Pictures) tells the story of a man who failed and was given a second chance. Norman Dale (Gene Hackman), a New York college basketball coach for the Ithaca Warriors, was fired for physically assaulting one of his players during a crucial game. A former colleague hired him as a high school basketball coach in Hickory, Indiana. He was treated as an outsider by the people of the town, who challenged his every decision and eventually tried to have him fired. But one courageous player, Jimmy Chitwood, saved Coach Dale’s job by declaring in front of the entire town, “If he goes, I go!” The Huskers went on to win the 1954 state basketball championship. Coach Dale faced enormous obstacles to win the hearts of the people of the town and lead his team to the championship. He discovered how to make the words of 1 Maccabees 3:19 his own: “It is not on the size of the army that victory in battle depends, but strength comes from Heaven.”

As the film Hoosiers demonstrates so well, our second chances find their true fulfillment in the strength of God alone. What can we learn about God’s strength for weary men who have failed? This week we will consider these points:

1.         Without God every man will fail.

All men, when they seek their own way, will stumble and fall. We need God’s strength to help us accomplish his purposes for our lives. When we do things on our own, we accomplish nothing but failure — even if it looks like success in the eyes of the world.

2.         God’s ways are not our ways, and we can thank him for that.

The Bible tells us, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, / neither are your ways my ways, says the LORD” (Is 55:8). So many men rage against the will of God and end up exhausted and defeated. When we surrender  to the truth that God is in charge, we receive the power we need to accomplish great things in his name.

3.         Hope is the fountain of youth.

Even strong young men will fail without God (cf. Is 40:30). But all men can find new spiritual vitality and renewed purpose by submitting to God in trust, knowing he will give us what we need. In his strength our drive and determination are reborn.

4.         In God our second chance can be our number-one accomplishment.

No matter how late we turn to God, he can make something great of our life if we live for the Lord. The mistakes of the past can give way to spiritual soaring and great personal triumph.

5.         Real strength and real manhood come from submitting to the greater good.

As we surrender to God’s purposes, we become caught up in the flow of his plan, and together with our brothers in faith, we work to carry it out. That humility is the essence of true manhood.

A Call to Action

No matter what mistakes we have made in the past, God’s renewing strength is always ready to pour itself into our lives. This week take time to reflect on the incredible gift of grace given to you in your Baptism, strengthened through Confession and Eucharist, and lived out within the family of the Church. Refuse to believe Satan’s lie that your failures are too many to forgive, the obstacles in your path are too big to overcome, or the future before you is too frightening to face. Hold on to the truth that “strength comes from heaven” and live for God’s glory and your good. Catholic men who accept their limitations and draw on God’s strength to renew them day after day can show the world that with God’s help, we can accomplish all that he desires for our lives.

You can learn more about the To the Ends of the Earth Series HERE