1 Timothy 2:1
You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus
Psalm 28:7a
The Lord is my strength and my shield;
in him my heart trusts, and I am helped;
It is such a temptation to think that our source of strength is within us, that we need to look inside ourselves for the strength we need. We are inherently self-focused and self-reliant. But where does that leave us when we face a challenge that is greater than our capacity? What do we do when we are not strong enough to carry a burden or press on through difficulty or face a challenge? What are we left with when our own reservoir of strength is used up?
So thank God that he tells us in his word that our strength is not our own. He is our strength. The grace that is in Jesus strengthens us. The Holy Spirit is our helper, the one who carries us and works in us.
Even the abilities and capacity we do have are from God so that we work with gratitude and dependence rather than pride and self-sufficiency. And God’s timing is always perfect–perfectly aware of our needs and perfectly providing for them–so that in our weakness we can always depend on Him. This means we can wait on him with patience rather than frantically draining what little strength we have in vain as if we are our only hope.
So we can go through life with confidence that we will receive the energy and power to serve God, to proclaim the gospel of Jesus, to grow in love for one another, and to lay our lives down day by day for Christ and his kingdom. And unlike any measure of earthly strength, Christian strength is marked by humility, meekness, sacrifice, and generosity because it is received as a gift of grace God has given us through Jesus.
I originally wrote this post for my church, Immanuel Nashville, in our Daily Pulse email. If you want encouragement from God’s word delivered Monday thru Friday to your inbox, I encourage you to subscribe.
