Where do you find your strength? Do you attribute it to an inner strength? Do you attribute it to previous trials and your ability to weather them? Is it due to your upbringing? Is it your genetics? Or does your strength come from a far more powerful source?
There are at least two types of strength we think of. There is the physical strength. Strength to lift, push, or pull objects. Then there is mental strength. It is a strength to overcome. It is a strength to withstand. It often drives us beyond what we believe our limits are.
Both of those strengths can be attributed to God. After all, he is the giver of all gifts. God gives our bodies and a brain to think. He provides our DNA, the genetic code that determines who we are to a large degree. We are also molded by our experiences, which are also within God’s control, whether we always believe that or not.
But what strength is the Apostle Paul speaking of in today’s passage. I suggest he is speaking of spiritual strength. This is a strength that looks to God to supply. We may think it is a weakness. Yet, it is a strength to know that God supplies our strength. As Paul states, we are to be strong in him and in his power. It is by being strong in his strength that we can stand against temptation.
God’s power is greater than anything we can imagine. We can access his power. We often forget that important fact. We attempt to stand in our own strength when there is a mightier power available to us. When we stand in his power, we overcome the obstacles before us. When we realize we need God’s power to stand, we then begin to stand firm.
I pray we all understand we need to stand in God’s strength. I pray we know we have access to God’s strength. I pray each one of us will stand against temptation with God’s strength. Stand in God’s strength. Access God’s power. Stand against temptation with God’s help.
Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power.
Marty Pressey 