Ephesians 6:10,11
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. 11Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.
This is similar to Joshua 1:7, “Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you;” Joshua was taking over leadership of Israel. He was nervous. In that context, God gives him this charge.
I like this as it tells us it’s a choice. It would seem that we are either strong or we aren’t. This indicates that we are all capable of being strong. The strength doesn’t come from us. It’s The Lord, who is the object of our strength. I may not be strong enough to open a garage door manually. However, it isn’t based on my strength. It has electricity and a motor. I can choose to activate the remote. Things in our lives seems overwhelming. Yet, it’s God’s strength. We choose to move and trust that He’ll assist.
Trusting God takes practice. He doesn’t start us out at the varsity level. Initially we are babes in Christ. We learn that He comes through in the small things. The lesson overflows to the entirety of our lives.
What’s the alternative? To give into fear. Anxiety and doubt are always present, ready to rush in and flood us. We choose that path on occasion. We may allow some degree to fill us often. Sometimes it feels as if a percentage of our consistency is anxiety. Anxiety plagues us and can cause us to freeze.
Some concern is good. We respect the situation. We prepare for it appropriately. It’s when we obsess over it that it is disruptive. It’s at this point that we choose to be strong. The haunting thoughts of fear and worry are still present, we just choose to ignore them. We’ve done our prayer and preparation. We accept that we’ve done our best and that He loves us and promises to help. His strength will be sufficient. From that we move on.
Philipians 4:6,7 describes the process: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Lord, thank You that You make us capable and You give us Your peace. Help us to rest and trust in Your sufficiency.