I had succumbed.
At least that’s how I initially viewed it. I saw it as a sign of weakness, of getting old, of giving in. But once I took the plunge, I realized I had only been deceiving myself through my own stubborn pride.
Last week I bought an e-bike. Not the kind that zips you along without you doing anything at all, but the electric assist kind, that you have to peddle, and I am loving it.
I have always enjoyed cycling, but as I got older, those hills and inclines just seemed to get higher and longer until I found myself not taking the bike out at all. And that realization brought back God’s view on pride and weakness.
So many times we try to do not only God’s work but any endeavor under our own power and strength, and as a result, we often get tired and discouraged until we stop trying at all.
But God never intended us to do anything in our own strength. Yes, we have to take steps of faith. Yes, we have to do the necessary preparations that come with the job or activity and the hard work of practice, but the results are always in God’s hands. He honors our efforts but celebrates our weaknesses, for through our weaknesses, His glory is revealed..
“God chose the weak to shame the strong” I Corinthians 1:27?
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9
One of my favorite devotionals is Streams in the Desert by Mrs. Charles E. Cowman, the first edition printed in 1925. On April 2 (in Volume 1) she says, “All the marvelous attributes of the Godhead are on the side of the weakest believer, who in the name of Christ, and in simple, childlike trust, yields himself to God and turns to Him for help and guidance.”
No better verse sums up the entirety of relying on God’s power rather than our own than 2 Corinthians 12:10--“When I am weak, then I am strong.”
Let's not try to do anything on our own. Let's tap into the power of God.
At least that’s how I initially viewed it. I saw it as a sign of weakness, of getting old, of giving in. But once I took the plunge, I realized I had only been deceiving myself through my own stubborn pride.
Last week I bought an e-bike. Not the kind that zips you along without you doing anything at all, but the electric assist kind, that you have to peddle, and I am loving it.
I have always enjoyed cycling, but as I got older, those hills and inclines just seemed to get higher and longer until I found myself not taking the bike out at all. And that realization brought back God’s view on pride and weakness.
So many times we try to do not only God’s work but any endeavor under our own power and strength, and as a result, we often get tired and discouraged until we stop trying at all.
But God never intended us to do anything in our own strength. Yes, we have to take steps of faith. Yes, we have to do the necessary preparations that come with the job or activity and the hard work of practice, but the results are always in God’s hands. He honors our efforts but celebrates our weaknesses, for through our weaknesses, His glory is revealed..
“God chose the weak to shame the strong” I Corinthians 1:27?
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9
One of my favorite devotionals is Streams in the Desert by Mrs. Charles E. Cowman, the first edition printed in 1925. On April 2 (in Volume 1) she says, “All the marvelous attributes of the Godhead are on the side of the weakest believer, who in the name of Christ, and in simple, childlike trust, yields himself to God and turns to Him for help and guidance.”
No better verse sums up the entirety of relying on God’s power rather than our own than 2 Corinthians 12:10--“When I am weak, then I am strong.”
Let's not try to do anything on our own. Let's tap into the power of God.
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