Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Encourage? - July 23, 2008

Good morning at mid-week; I am up before the dawn to watch the sunrise. I didn't intend to do that last night when going to bed; it just kind of worked out that way this morning. Some mornings I wake up feeling ready to go... at 2:00am. Perhaps it is the eager anticipation of writing the devotional that does it! This morning in my Bible reading, I came upon a checklist for encourage-ers. Some of the items were those that I struggle with daily. How am I to encourage you when having troubles of my own? Other items were those that all of us must overcome throughout our lifetimes. Many sounded more like challenges in our Christian life than words of encouragement. However, the last item clinched the whole deal. God will strengthen us. That's right, in all of the challenges of this life of growing ever closer to Jesus, our Lord and perfect ideal, God himself sends us the strength and authority to overcome the world. The world in this case also includes the desires of the flesh that can so hinder us in our daily Christian growth. Like the sunrise that I am glancing at from time to time, the strength that God grants us may start slowly, even seeming to be beneath our perception at first. We might even ask, "Are you there, Lord?" The Lord is indeed there and here in our hearts, we have but to wait and watch as the strength to resist grows within us. Like the sunrise, the fullness of the Lord's strength in our lives will surely come, powerful and unstoppable. Trust daily in the Lord to bear us up in the times of difficulty.

Praise the name of Jesus Christ!

Bucky

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