The Experience of God’s Power in Weakness

Whenever we are being true to ourselves, and the moment we find ourselves in, we will find God gives us the grace to do and say what we ordinarily would or could not. But as soon as we get pretentious, self-conscious, or self-absorbed God’s power evaporates and we stumble everywhere.

God’s power is shaped through the soul’s centrality of dependence, around the circumference of unabridged humility, and by the fullness of his favour.

It may take quite a level of self-control to surrender our ego in the moment, and as far as character status is concerned, we need to be patient within ourselves to grow.

Character growth into the quintessence of integrity is a prerequisite for routinely accessing this mysterious power of God, known as grace, because it requires us to choose for our weakness; to be vulnerable; to open ourselves up courageously, having subjugated our pride.

Who in the world would willingly give up their strength to claim their weakness?

It is the Christian’s role and goal.

The Effortless Work of the Spirit

This is what Jesus requires; when we are emptied of ourselves and our pitiable pride we are most pliable to the Spirit’s leading. We are less likely to interrupt the serene surge of the Spirit. The work of the Spirit is effortless, but all our work is contrived in labour.

When we pour ourselves out for the Lord, notwithstanding common difficulties, there is this inexplicable grace that somehow gets us through.

Just the same there are those conversations where we, in the midst of them, are praying for the Divine leading, yet we miss it because we are looking and trying too hard. Then we remind ourselves to just relax, and quietly the Spirit of God enters to help us by giving us poise.

The work of the Spirit is effortless, and the more our words make sense, and our deeds make a difference, the more we are led by the Spirit.

When a preacher prays for the leading of the Spirit before they preach a sermon, and they pray for empty words to disappear yet words full of anointing to take root, they are praying for God’s power to intercede through them that moment. What a godly prayer!

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The work of God’s Spirit is powerful in and through us when we add no strength to it. Accessing God’s power is easier than we think, but we must empty ourselves of ourselves first. Then it is all ours for the moment. We must routinely go back into God to receive this awesome spiritual power.

© 2014 S. J. Wickham.