God Empowering Us!

He gives power to the faint;
and strengthens the powerless. Isaiah 40:20

My grace is sufficient for you, for your power is brought to its finish in weakness. 2 Cor.12:9

In my readings, I have come across a marvelous character and here I would like to share him with you by quoting Marva Dawn :

"Clifford Schultz, one of the mightiest men I have ever known, was almost completely incapacitated by multiple sclerosis. The vibrancy of his faith and witness and the depth of his love and compassion moved literally hundreds of people. He always had a good word of encouragement for everyone he met, especially the other patients at the convalescent home where he lived. All who visited him were uplifted by his strength. No one could ever doubt who was the Source and Giver of Clifford's immense resilience.

Clifford had a tremendously eternal mind enclosed in a terribly confining body, limited to little physical movement. He constantly struggled against pain and limitation. His faith and zeal for evangelism were a constant inspiration for others. He knew well how to draw his strength from the LORD. He told everyone he met about the great love of his Savior Jesus Christ.

One day while he was struggling to breathe and travailing laboriously to speak and sing, he said, "You know, Marva, life is so wonderful down here, it's hard to imagine that heaven will be even better. But it will be!"

He knew so well the promise of strength in Isaiah 40:29, and his love for the LORD overpowered everything else. His heart, mind, and spirit were so eternally fixed that the limitations of his body were surmounted with great struggle and greater joy. He always had more than enough strength to carry on his ministry, even in the weakest of times. Isn't it amazing that God accomplishes his purposes through us -in spite of us! What is stunning about Isa.40:29 is the realization that we never do really begin to discover the power of God until we learn our own weaknesses.

In 2Cor.12:9, the verb in the Greek original, which is usually translated "made perfect", is the same verb that Jesus cried from the cross when his work was ended. Every time that verb appears in the New Testament, it is translated "to bring to the finish," with the one exception of 2Cor.12:9. If we brought the customary meaning of that verb to bear on that verse also, we would know more clearly how God's strength is available to us.

When we are weak, we no longer try to exert our useless power. It is brought to its end, and we become yielded vessels. Then God can really begin to exert his power through us to reach out to others. That is what Clifford demonstrated so profoundly. Having no strength of his own, he was an almost perfectly pliable tool in God's hands. With his power ended, God's power could come through Clifford strongly.

Do we take God up on His promise? Are we able to receive His strength? We can never know God's power unless we attempt the impossible. As long as we are doing things that are within our capabilities, things for which we are qualified and skilled, we can easily trust our own gifts (forgetting that those come from God also). Only when we try to do things beyond us, will we end our attempts at power, dependently turn to the LORD and rely solely on Him.

As individuals and as a church, we should proceed more boldly with missions that we know to be the LORD's will. We can trust that God will multiply doubly the strengths we need to accomplish his purposes.

The key is knowing the One who is the Giver and Multiplier of strength. We might faint or lack the necessary might, but it is irrelevant. In fact it is better that way because then our power can be brought to its end and instead God's power can be multiplied through us on behalf of others. Then everyone can see that the transcendent power definitely belongs to God and not to us."

Quoted from "To walk and not faint" by Marva Dawn"