Strength Has Many Forms

There are a couple forms of strength that we use to 'get by' in life. One is this thing we call physical strength. It is the 'brute strength' we use to pick up a heavy object or move a stalled car. It is technically the ability exert physical force upon an object. There is also mental strength - the thing we use to overcome pain and push a bit further when all we want to do is give up on that five-mile run. If allows us to be productive throughout our day and to be more efficient. It is how we get things done. There is emotional strength, which some clearly lack, while others seem to have it all together all of the time. Sometimes we struggle to make it through a day because we are a basket case, while at others we can muddle through just fine. The type of strength we all need but may not have right now is this thing we refer to as spiritual strength. It is the God-given strength that goes beyond physical, mental, or emotional strength. 

I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. (Ephesians 3:16-19)

God's strength surpasses all other forms of strength, but he uses all the other forms of strength to get things done through us in this world. He uses our physical strength to build his churches, move church gear in and out of auditoriums each Sunday, and even to see an elderly woman's house cleaned up. This spiritual strength actually 'bolsters' all other forms of strength we utilize. It gives us insight into what we should be doing every day, but we oftentimes don't even bother to ask God how we should use the strength he gives. We just go aimlessly about our 'routine' and then we wonder why we are lacking some form of strength for whatever it is we are attempting to accomplish.

Spiritual strength is developed when we take time to read his Word, engage in conversation with him, and worship at his feet. Unlike all the other forms of strength, this one is not of our own making, but we do need to make ourselves available to him if we are to see it developed. Unlimited resources are available to us when we do. So, why do we resist these quiet times with God, time in his Word, or those moments of reflective praise? It is usually because something else distracts us and we allow those distractions to take precedence over the 'development time'. Power comes as we quiet down long enough to allow it to be developed deep within. Unlike all other forms of strength, it is in the times when we reveal our weaknesses that we are made strong. Just sayin!