Be Strong and stay Strong

When life hits us with complications and sorrow, we are often told to be strong. In the moment, that may feel unobtainable. How can we be strong when we are tired, emotionally and physically? How can we be strong when we are, by nature, weak? The answer is our very weakness itself. The greater our weakness, the stronger we can become. The greater our weakness, the more we realize how great our dependence on God must be in order for us to prevail. That is when we discover what true strength is. That is when caution grows to become courage and fear blooms into faith. We are at our strongest when we acknowledge just how weak we truly are.

Throughout Scripture, God purposefully used men and women who carried some burden of weakness with them. He used them, not in spite of their weakness but often because they acknowledged that weakness. Israel’s first and second king, King Saul and King David, give us great examples of how our own strength gets in the way of God’s strength flowing through us. 1 Samuel 14:47-48 says, “When Saul had taken the kingship over Israel, he fought against his enemies on every side, against Moab, against the Ammonites, against Edom, against the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines; wherever he turned he put them to the worse. And he did valiantly, and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of those who plundered them.” King Saul became strong in his own eyes. His victories gave him confidence in his strength. It is this strength that became his weakness. It gave him false confidence that he did not need to listen to all of God’s commands. He trusted not in the Lord and paid for his arrogance with the loss of God’s favor. 1 Samuel 15:26 says, “And Samuel said to Saul, ‘I will not return with you; for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.”

In contrast, we see the life of David filled with as many or more mistakes as Saul and yet he retains God’s favor throughout his life. The difference in their experiences is that David never trusted his strength – or when he did he quickly repented because he understood how desperately he needed God. Psalm 27:1 shows us just one of many examples of David’s source of strength. He wrote, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” David’s source of strength was always God. Because of this, because he understood just how weak he truly was, God’s strength flowed through him. It was always God’s strength that encouraged David when he was afraid. It was God’s promises that gave him courage. When life was hard, and David’s life was filled with pain and struggle, he drew strength and courage from his God.

When life grows challenging, trust in God and not your strength. Our strength will only take us so far. It will leave us just when we need it the most. God’s strength grows stronger as we grow weaker. The more we depend on God, the greater we realize just how dependable and strong His powerful arm truly is. So be strong. Be courageous, but don’t rely on yourself. Don’t put all your strength into your talents or abilities. Don’t place it in the hands of a mere human who walks with the same frailties we all do. Gather your strength from the Author of Strength. Stand firm with unshaken courage because you know and trust that God is in control. He is your strength. Depend on Him.