All Power is God's Power

A dear brother was once preaching about... well, to be honest, I can't remember the topic of the sermon.  Or the text.  Or the theme.  I remember the preacher.  And the church.  And one particular statement:  All Power is GOD's Power!

I got a little stuck on this idea.  I called the Hubs (I was out of town) and talked about this idea.  "Is all power really God's power?" I asked.  "Well, yes," he replied.  "God is the creator and sustainor of our universe.  All power is His."

This was revolutionary to me.  All power is God's power.  As I was running late to drop Chas off at school (before homeschooling) and didn't have time to stop for gas because the next tardy meant detention and I really didn't want him to pay for my mistake.  Then I remembered.  All power is God's power.  It is't the gas that is making this car go.  It is God.  Yes, most of the time God works through the blessing of gas in an internal combustion engine, but he certainly doesn't have to.

When I was trying to drive my husband's old '76 Chevy that had a STANDARD!  It was UGLY, people.  But I continued to tell myself, it isn't this clutch and fly wheel that is making this car go (or in my case, stutter, stall, and not go), it is God.  All power is His power and He can make this pickup go.

These sound silly and far-fetched (and oddly all automobile related), I know.  Most people don't think this way.  God is needed for the "Big Stuff."  Healings of diseases and for salvation of the lost.  For protection around soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines in harm's way.  To comfort the families of those who have lost loved ones or are struggling.  This is God's "job" right?  This is where and when we pray; for the Big Stuff.

No.  We are to pray always, for everything.  Not because God needs a constant rundown of what is going on in our minds or our lives, but because of what that constant communication does.  As we look to God (creator and sustainor) for all things, from what are we going to make for dinner that night, to what to wear to a friend's for dinner, to how on earth to teach aesthetics to my freshman son, something truly miraculous happens.  We get closer to God.  We develop a deep and sincere relationship with Him.

Imagine for a minute, if you are married (if not, imagine your best friend), that you only talked to your spouse about big things.  You only discussed bill payments and vacations and house repairs.  What kind of relationship would you have?  It wouldn't be very close.  It would be pretty shallow.  Most people that are on the outside looking in would wonder if there was even love there at all.

This is why God wants us to come to Him with the mundane, the ordinary, the lackluster.  This is where most of us live daily.  If we only wait on the Big Stuff, then we miss out on a daily closeness and growing relationship with Him.  If we fail to acknowledge God's power in the small day-to-day things, then we fail to acknowledge just how GREAT a God He truly is.  

Don't miss out.  Don't fail to look for the tiny miracles that make up every day.  Don't fail to keep your eyes open for opportunities to share all the little moments with God.  Because one day, when you turn around  and look back, all those little moments will add up to one great big life full of our Lord.  Each tiny moment will blend into the next until all you have is a life lived with Him at the center and a deep abiding love to show for it.

Long time, no read...

So, I am not quite sure that anyone out there reads this, but regardless, it has been a good long while since I've written.  Again.  I don't know why I do so well for a while and then tend to fall off.  In any event, here I am... with nothing much to say... yet.  (see what I did there).

Hopefully, I will get back into the swing of things.  I have a little challenge that I've made with myself (hopefully, I'll win).  I want to write more whether or not my mom is the only one out there reading this stuff (JK, my mom totally doesn't even read my blog).  

With that in mind, I kinda wanted to share a little something that I needed today.  

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you.Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid."  John 14:27 (ESV)

I have struggled a lot lately with fear.  It has gripped me and it has dehibilitated me in major ways.  I have many fears, but they all tend to come back to the great fear of the unknown.  In the end, it doesn't matter where the fear originates, it is wrong.  I am a Christian, a follower of Christ.  Because of that alone, I should not fear.  I shouldn't look at what may be around the corner, but focus on what is right now.

The other side of this is the peace issue.  I serve a God of peace and He has placed that peace within me.  I think we often misunderstand what peace actually is.  It isn't the absence of trouble.  It isn't a serene, calm feeling.  No, peace is merely resting in the knowledge that it is all okay.  You see, many Christian bretheren are constantly martyred all over the world.  They may or may not have a calm, serene feeling, but you can rest assured that they have peace.  They have the inherent bone deep knowledge that it is going to be okay, no matter what 'it' may be.   That is the peace of God; that is the peace all christians should seek.

Peace and fear can rarely, if ever, coexist.  If we truly hold the belief that it will all work to God's honor and our good, then it is hard to fear, even when the circumstaces seem dire.  In times past, many Christians would sing, shout, or say 'Hallelujah' but I think that we have forgotten what that means.  It isn't an affirmation or a declaration of agreement.  Hallelujah isn't an Amen (Let it be so).  No, hallelujah is a victory cry.  It is what is said at the end of the battle when it is won!  You see, we can cry hallelujah even in the midst of battle, because we know where the victory lies and who is for us.  When we stand with Christ, we don't have to wonder or worry about the outcome because the outcome is already secured.  We are His and He is our Victor!  To know Him and that victory is true and everlasting peace that can chase away each and every fear.