Great Giver of Strength

"When I am weak, then I am strong. 

Grace is my shield and Christ is my song."

I love Charles Spurgeon's poetic words, but they convict me terribly. have come to the recent realization that I try to do too much without God. It is not that I don't want to involve him. It is not that I am scared to bother him with petty things. I may not even be disregarding him intentionally. It is just that my human nature tells me that I can do a few things on my own. 

My tendency is to attempt the things that I think I can do on my own, then turn to God with the things that get out of control. This is really how I have been living so far. I even saw it in myself this week as I continue to make preparations to go to Africa. I prayed about the big things, but not the small ones. I asked for his help with the big decisions, but I made get small ones without consulting him at all. I held his hand for the leaps of faith, but it took small steps on my own strength. 

And I found myself in a place of weakness without any joy. 

So my eyes have now been opened to see God as the "great giver of strength" (Cynthia Heald in "Becoming a Woman of Strength"). God isn't interested in just providing strength when our human strength is insufficient. He wants to be the strength inside so us. He doesn't want to only step in when our own strength fails. He wants to be the source of our strength every step of the way. 

He is most strong in our weakness, therefore our weaknesses highlight his strength and sufficiency. Instead of covering our weaknesses and attempting to do things on our own, we ought to boast in our weaknesses because it brings God glory. 

Charles Spurgeon also wrote, "Because the Holy Spirit is so mighty, attempt nothing without him. Do not begin a project, or carry on an enterprise, or conclude a transaction without imploring his blessing. Honor him by acknowledging your entire weakness apart from him."

So I am trying something new. I don't want to attempt to handle anything without the strength of the Lord, even the little things that I feel I should be able to do on my own. I am learning that strength does not come from myself - EVER- so I am asking God to be the Strong One inside of me. I am turning to God for strength with every step, and I am finding more and more joy. 

What does it look like exactly, to seek God's strength like this? To me, it looks like a whole lot more prayer. I want to pray about everything now - every decision, every opportunity, every stepping stone. It also looks like a whole lot more intentional study of the Scriptures - daily searches for guidance and truth-treasures. 

Will you join me in this seeking of strength? Please pray for me, that I will not take one single step towards Africa without Christ. Pray for me to pray more, and to pray about everything. Pray for me to study Scripture more and find direction and truth in every page. And please pray for me to boast in my weaknesses, even enjoy them, as I learn to let Christ be strong in me. 

"When I am weak, then I am strong.

Grace is my shield and Christ is my song!"