And she said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him. Judges 16:20
We live out in the country, and I love it, but there is one aspect of living out here that I’m not so fond of. When we lose power, it usually stays out for several days before the power company gets it turned back on. When we moved into our house, it was a fixer-upper, so we were excited to see that it already had a whole-house generator installed. Here’s the bad news: when our power went out in the first storm we had, we found out quickly that the generator was not in working order. What at first seemed like a great sense of comfort turned out to be an even greater sense of frustration. You see, the power was available to us, but it did us no good because it wasn’t hooked up and working.
Many Christians treat God’s power in the same way. They know that it is available to them, almost as a security blanket, but they don’t make sure their relationship with God is in working order. When the storms of life inevitably arise, and they start to face difficulties, they turn to God, expecting His power to be available. Sadly, since their relationship with God is not what it should be, they realize too late that His power has long since departed. For far too long they have harbored some sin in their hearts, or, at the very least, they have neglected to spend the time with God that is necessary to have His power.
The Biblical story of Samson is a prime example of a man that used God’s power as a security blanket, but who didn’t stay connected to the Source of that power. He lived as if he could do whatever he pleased, but he soon found out that living that way caused the Lord to depart from him. Along with that departure went the power of God that Samson had come to take for granted would always be available to him. The “storm” came, and he called upon that power, but it was nowhere to be found.
The only way to ensure that the blessings of God will enshroud your life is to live with His power on everything you do. However, don’t live as if God’s power will always be available to you if you are not living for Him. Keep your relationship with God where it should be, and you will never be disconnected from His power on your life.
Read also: Judges 16:4-21
Quote of the day: "Never underestimate the power of a living God.”
#September2019 #Judges #Godspower #sin