All too often when I’m asked to pray for someone and I ask what it that they desire? The answer comes back “pray for my strength”. For the past few days I’ve been trying to figure out why is it that most people are asking for strength. Then another opportunity, recently a woman asked me to pray for her strength and I asked her strength in what? I had always assumed that when people ask for prayer in strength that it meant that they were tired or that they felt there were not enough hours in a day for them to meet their obligations.
This woman replied with something more direct and strength was not the totality of what she was asking me to pray for. So I began to pray then she began to cry and after the prayer she hugged me so hard I thought she was trying to melt into my being. I had to go a wee bit further to get to the real source of her need. Normally when a person ask me to pray for them I quickly reply “what do you need prayer for”? I’m determined to pray the will of GOD and what you want me to pray for may not be in GOD’s will. Pray for me could mean that you want to cop some drugs quickly without getting caught and that you don’t overdose; you are trying to get your next booty call; you want someone else’s spouse and so on. So I confess, I’ve been messing up on that strength prayer but now that I’ve got it right more people will discover the blessing of GOD. Today I did some research in the New Testament and found 17 versus regarding strength and there were over 200 in the Old Testament.
When we are weak in our flesh be it fatigue or sin JESUS in HIS grace for us is sufficient and HIS strength is made perfect in our weakness. GOD knows that we can’t live without HIM but we take the long and worthless road to nowhere thinking that we can live without GOD. 2 Corinthians 12:9
We are weak in our love; because if we don’t love GOD with everything that we are and with all that we have; how can we possibly love ourselves and others the way we should. Mark 12:30 & 33
We are weak in our faith; most of us that attend church service will listen to the preaching or teaching coming across the pulpit without taking notes. For those of us who do take notes we close the notebook up and leave it that way until the next church service that we are to attend. Just like exercise, fruits, milk and vegetables gives our bodies the strength it needs so does our faith need to be well nourished by reading the Bible daily and study your notes. Remember what Popeye said “I fights to the finish cause I eats me spinach” we get to the start line and drop 5-10ft away because we are weak. Acts 9:22
When we disobey the Word of GOD and deny the name of JESUS we are weak. But when we obey at least what we know in the Word of GOD and proclaim the name of JESUS we are strengthened. Rev. 3:8
It’s difficult to perform a task when you are just not feeling it; you’re fatigued; you want to do anything then what you need to do. Who has not been there? My remedy sometimes is to remember that it’s not about me; it’s about bringing glory to GOD. Be it housework; shopping (oh how I hate that task) and believe it or not ministry. Zech. 4:6 and Philippians 4:13
This last thing that I will cover should not happen too often unless you are a procrastinator. We work on projects where there are deadlines or for some reason everyone included did not put in their full potential and you are running out of steam. Take a breather; survey what has to be accomplished NOW; give a hand to the slacker that is holding up progress. Because again, it’s not about you or us it’s about giving glory to GOD. Isaiah 40: 29-31