POWER….where does it come from?
I’m not talking about a physical strength or a control
someone can force on others. I’m talking about a power that rises up to break
people free from the things that oppress them. Spiritual, mental, emotional,
physical chains that aren’t supposed to be on people. There has to be a power
that can set those people free. A power that breaks the chains of bondage and
gives a way to new life.
Is this power something we can produce on our own? Is it
something that requires the right steps to lead someone through, does it take a
book to teach us how to use it, does it require a certain level of education to
know how to apply it?
I think it has more to do with faith than education. I think
has more to do with hope than information found in a self-help book. I think it
has more to do with love than a step-by-step checklist.
But that’s not how we want to function. We want to have
things planned out and eliminate as many risks as possible. We want to know the
outcome if we follow the prescribed steps. We want the easiest road possible to
get to our destination.
Because the reality is….faith, hope and love are messy
things. They don’t have clear boundaries and formulas for how to apply them.
They leave room for interpretation. They leave room for errors and forgiveness,
for pain and joy, for sacrifice and healing….and ultimately, they leave room
for something bigger than ourselves.
It takes the focus off “us” and puts it on others.
We need a power that doesn’t fit into the box we’ve created for it. We
need a power that’s rooted in the Gospel. When I read the stories found in the gospels, I see
this power everywhere. Every interaction Jesus had with a person was a display
of His Father’s power. Healings
broke out, lives were transformed, and something shifted in others.
This power is still available to us today. For some reason we’ve categorized
things and told ourselves they don’t happen today the way they did in Jesus’
time. And we’ve bought into this
lie and are living powerless lives.
But the world is broken, hurting and dying. It doesn’t need another kind word or humanitarian
organization. It needs people that
are alive and living out the gospel.
People who are empowered by the Holy Spirit to change things in this world. People who live out their faith, know
the hope that Christ offers, and love unconditionally.
This is the POWER that I am talking about. I need this power….you need this
power…the world is desperate for this power. God…please remind us of what a life filled with your power
looks like.
