Strength from the Lord How blessed is the man whose strength is in Thee. Psalm 84:5 NASB Strength, power for living, is needed by everyone in these challenging times. And God wants to give you His strength, in an abundant supply. But Gods ways are higher than mans ways, and Gods thoughts are higher than mans thoughts (Isaiah 55:8,9). This is undoubtedly true, when it comes to the strength of the Lord. Gods ways of strengthening you are different than mans ways. Gods purpose is to make you strong. In fact, He is the One who gives power and strength to his people. (Psalm 68:35). Gods purpose is to strengthen you, and to give you power in His ways. You are even commanded, Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might! (Ephesians 6:10). God wants you to be strong. Strong in Him, strong in love, strong because you are filled with the Holy Spirit. You must have an unshakable confidence, that Gods purpose is to make you strong in Him. When you face situations which you dont understand, or when you encounter obstacles, difficulties, or painful situations which you were not expecting, it is easy for you to lose sight of Gods purposes. Gods thoughts are not like our thoughts. Our thoughts can become thoughts of fear or discouragement, anger or frustration. Thoughts like: Ill never be able to get through this, or, God must be punishing me for something Ive done, or, The Lord is against me, can become a part of our thinking. But Gods thought is to make you strong! His will is to make you stronger, not to tear you down. You must become strong in the ways of the Lord. The way of the Lord is strength to the upright. (Prov.10:29 KJV) God says to you, Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you. Surely I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10, NASB). The strength of the Lord is more than enough, to meet every obstacle. Gods Word says, Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. (2 Tim.2: 1 KJV). The Word says, In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us. (Rom.8:37 KJV). The Word says, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil.4:13), and, The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1 KJV). Gods promise is, In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength. (Isaiah 30:15 KJV). Yes, God wants you to be strong! David was a man who knew the ways of the Lord. He was a man after Gods own heart. Yet he encountered a situation that from all appearances looked like a complete tragedy. He and his men were away from their camp, when the Amalekites came and raided the camp. They took all of the women and children, all of their belongings, and burned the town with fire (I Sam.30: 1,2). When David and his men came back to their camp and found it completely destroyed, then David and the people who were with him lifted their voices and wept until there was no strength in them to weep. (I Sam.30:4 NASB). To make things worse, David became distressed because the people spoke of stoning him. They were embittered because of the loss of their loved ones in this terrible tragedy (I Sam.30:6). David could easily have turned his back on the Lord in such a perilous situation. He could easily have thought that God was against him, or that God had forgotten him. He could have become bitter, like some of the people did. But David knew the Lord. He knew that the Lord was for him, not against him. He knew that Gods purpose was to strengthen him in this situation. So, David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. (I Sam.30:6 NASB). He received strength from the Lord; power to overcome and to conquer. David inquired of the Lord, and received word from the Lord to pursue the Amalekites. He found them, eating and drinking and partying, spread over the countryside. They were celebrating over their plunder, unaware of any danger. David and his men completely surprised them, routing and defeating the Amalekites. All of the women and children were restored to David and his men. They recovered all that had been taken from them; they also recovered all of the plunder of the Amalekites. God had the final word. Not long after this incident, David was made king over Judah. The Amalekite raid was one of the greatest testings David faced, and it happened shortly before he was made king. David could have walked away from Gods plan, in the time of testing. But he knew Gods purposes, and that his God wanted him to be strong. Do we realize that it is true, for us as well? David strengthened himself in the Lord his God (I Sam.30:6). How can we receive more of the strengthening power of the Lord into our hearts and lives? Here are some of the ways you can receive strength from the Lord: 1. Those who WAIT ON THE LORD shall renew their strength (Isaiah 40:31). You need to spend time waiting before the Lord, thanking Him and honoring Him, and placing your situations in His hands; you need to spend significant, quality time with Him. The Spirit will surely come like the wind, to strengthen you. 2. CALL ON THE LORD, in earnest and believing prayer: In the day that I called, you answered me. You encouraged me with strength in my soul. (Psalm 138:3). 3. BELIEVE that it is undoubtedly Gods purpose to impart strength to you, and to make you strong, no matter what the situation may look like. Gods promises are clear, that the will of the Lord is to strengthen you (Psalm 105:4, Isaiah 30:15, Psalm 68:35, Psalm 27:14 / Eph.6: 10,11, 2 Tim.2:1, Isaiah 41: 10, Isaiah 40:31). Paul learned to delight in situations that revealed his own weakness, knowing that those situations were the exact time when God would step in to reveal His strength! God told Paul, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Paul then said, Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me (2 Corinthians 12:9). 4. You must TURN FROM SIN, to be strengthened by the Lord. Sin is what can make you weak. The Psalmist said, My strength has failed because of my iniquity. (Psalm 31:10 NASB). You must turn from sin, and receive cleansing and forgiveness through the blood of Christ. God will help you to make a fresh start, and to leave the past behind. 5.DRAW NEAR TO THE LORD. It is the Lord Himself who is your strength. Drawing near to Him insures that His strength will dwell in you, because His presence will be near you and in you. You are told to seek the Lord, and His strength. (Psalm 105:4). 6.BE OF GOOD COURAGE. The Word of God says, Wait on the Lord. Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart. (Ps.27:14 KJV). If you have courage, God is able to strengthen you. You must have courage and faith when you draw near to God, knowing that it is His will to strengthen you, and to clear a path for you. David was of good courage, when he went out to face Goliath. We must also be of good courage, when we face our battles. 7.The WORD OF GOD strengthens your faith, and builds you up. The Word of God can be relied upon, with confidence. Strengthen me, according to Thy Word. (Psalm 119:28 NASB). Meditate on, and rely upon, the Word of God. Saturate your mind and your spirit with the Word, and the promises of the Word, for your strengthening. As you do these things, God will impart His strength to you. You will be strengthened to walk in victory, and walk in faith. God will show himself strong on your behalf. Being strong as a follower of Christ does not mean pushing other people around, dominating other people, or being otherwise obnoxious. Strength from the Lord makes you strong enough to love people, strong enough to be gentle with difficult people, strong enough to do the right things at the right times, with the peace of God in your heart. It is awesome, to have the strength of His love! We must remember that the strength of love is the opposite of the strength of selfishness. At times Gods people can begin to drift, and begin to coast along on their own strength. We can gradually begin to do things in our own strength, and not even realize that we are no longer walking in the strength of the Lord. That is why we must seek fresh strength from the Lord day by day and week by week. We must seek fresh strength in prayer, the Word, and waiting upon the Lord. The Israelites in the wilderness so often missed Gods purposes. God wanted to make them strong - strong in faith, strong in trust, strong in the Lord. But when food and water began to run low, they didnt feel strong; they felt weaker. They missed Gods purpose - He wanted to strengthen them, and provide for all of their needs. But they often doubted, or grumbled and complained. Gods ways were higher than their ways. But throughout the wanderings of the Israelites, Caleb had learned of Gods strength. After forty years in the wilderness, he could say, I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out. I am just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. (Joshua 14:11,12 NIV). Caleb knew that Gods purpose was to make him strong. The blessing of the Lord was powerfully manifested in his life. He received the full measure of the blessing of the Lord. As we are strengthened by the Lord, part of Gods purpose is that we help others to find that same strength. We should be like Jonathan: during a difficult time he went to David, and helped him to find strength in God (I Sam.23: 16). When brothers or sisters in Christ, or others we love are passing through a difficult time, they need someone who can help them find strength from the Lord. We are to pray for one another, and bear one anothers burdens. Then God will use us as His instruments, to bring His strength to those who need it. by M. A. Erickson
Posted on: Sat, 15 Nov 2014 02:43:29 +0000
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