“Tapping into Divine Power”

I remember when our children were very young, I would let them drive around the parking lot at the church.  They would be setting in front of me and behind the steering wheel, excited to be “in control.”  I’m sure many parents have done this when their kids were small.   My kid’s legs could not even reach the pedal, and their tiny hands could not reach to the top of the steering wheel, but they just knew they were driving.  The truth was, I were in control all the time.  It was my feet on the brakes and gas and it was my hands ever so close to theirs.  I was keeping close watch over everything that was going on.  They were safe and “in control” because of their dad. As we enter this new year, our theme as a church will be, “For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk, but of power.”  What would happen in our lives, if we allowed our Heavenly Father to be in control.  Our hands may be on the wheel, but are we allowing him to do the driving?  Is it possible to live with God’s almighty power flowing through us in all we do?  How can we make this happen?  Listen to the words of Paul in II Corinthians 12:9: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.  Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” Acts 6:8 teaches us that Stephen was full of God’s grace and power and did great works. II Corinthians 4:7 teaches us that we are like clay pots, weak and frail in and of ourselves.  When God begins to do great things through us, He gets the glory because it is so beyond our abilities.  One of my good friends asked me several years ago, “What is happening in your life right now that the only way you can describe it is, God is doing it.”  We can sure manufacture many things on our own, but what a difference it would make in our lives, our churches, our marriages, and our ministries if God’s power flowed freely and effectively through us. Ephesians 3:20 teaches us that God will do far beyond all we could ever think or ask when his power is at work in us. We are admonished in Ephesians 6:10 to be strong in the Lord. If we ever learn how to tap into God’s almighty power, He will fulfill every good purpose in us.  His power is really all we need to live the godly life He has called us to.  (II Thessalonians 2:11; II Peter 1:3) I wish I could look back over my life and say that God’s power has always been flowing freely through me.  I wish I could tell you exactly what to do to have God’s power at work in your life.  Not just through talk and explanation of the scripture, but through experience.  That will be our goal in 2009.  We want to experience God’s power at work in our life unlike anything we have ever seen.  It will be a great learning experience and I’m sure His power will begin to work when we know and acknowledge our weakness and dire need of Him! In His Love,