POWER OUTAGES BRING MANY QUESTIONS

We don’t like having the power go off. We become so used to having our electric lights and gadgets that when an outage happens, we wonder what we should do. Not so with the Lord. We can tap into His power any time, any place, and depend on its constancy. Praise God!

Eternal Perspectives   by Sally Bair

We experienced a minor power outage recently. When the electricity fails it always causes us to think. Can we find our flashlight? Are the batteries still fresh? Do we need to transfer our frozen foods elsewhere? What made the outage happen? How long will it last?

In more drastic situations, such as from bad storms or earthquakes, we’re forced to find power elsewhere. As much as we’d like to believe that we can depend on our electrical systems at all times, we cannot. All types of manmade power fail. Candles burn out, batteries die, generators fail. And so do our strength, energy and courage.

God’s power never diminishes. He used it when He created the universe and He used it to raise His Son Jesus from the dead. He uses it daily in the miracles we see in nature and in humankind.

His power also is seen in the transformation of people who choose to follow Christ. “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:13-14)

God’s power within us does not stop when we accept Him as our Savior and Lord through faith. Paul attested to that in one of his letters. He admitted that nothing he did for Christ came from his own strength. “And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:4-5)

We also cannot claim lasting or dependable power in ourselves no matter what we do or say. Without Christ and God’s Spirit, we are as weak as a burning candle. Our self-proclaimed “light” may seem bright but will come to nothing as surely as our household electricity does during a power outage.

Jesus said He is the Light of the world and as His followers we are too. Our light must come directly from Him. No matter our circumstance, when we allow it, His light of power will shine through us. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7)

Thank You, Lord, for Your everlasting power and the power You allow us to use on Your behalf. Cause us to use it wisely and consistently for Your glory. In Jesus’ name, amen.