“The most powerful man who ever walked on the planet…Jesus Christ…gave away his power for the benefit of saving, healing, and blessing the world.”
Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – March 15, 2024
Remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him… and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places. Ephesians 1:16-17, 19-20
Powerless. That is how I feel sometimes, but that is not what God has given me. I often forget that my generous God has given me his power…the same power that he used to raise his son Jesus from the grave.
So, why do I have seasons of feeling powerless? Because…
Life can be difficult…even unbearable at times…health challenges, financial issues, rowdy, even rebellious children, work despair, fractured relationships, broken dreams…
Yet my generous God gives me His powerful wisdom and grace to not just get through life but to thrive in life. One of His most powerful strategies (though not always intuitive or practical) is generous living. I ask myself, so, Lord, where do I start to experience the power of generosity?
Generous living starts with a prayerful mindset of gratitude to the Lord. The power of generosity begins with gratitude to my generous God.
I learn to lean into being grateful for His blessings of life, relationships, and freedom to enjoy Him, freedom to be loved and to love. As my wife Rita reminds me often, who gets to do this? Who gets to live a life of generosity because of the radical generosity of our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ, who…
“Though he was so very rich, yet to help you he became so very poor, so that by being poor he could make you rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9, TLB).
So, for us to better understand and acknowledge the power of God at work in our lives, we need to first look at how Jesus, when at the beginning of his ministry, was confronted by Satan to use power for building a kingdom on earth for Himself, refused and instead gave His power away to save the world for all who would believe and to build the kingdom of heaven…
“Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. ‘All this I will give you,’ he said, ‘if you will bow down and worship me.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only” (Matthew 4:8-10).
Satan tried to tempt our Savior Jesus with power when He offered control over the kingdoms of the world… and then abruptly, Jesus called out the evil one to worship and serve God…the only One who has all power.
The most powerful man who ever walked on the planet…Jesus Christ…gave away his power for the benefit of saving, healing, and blessing the world.
You have been given the power of God to carry out the purposes of God. His power is at work in you to will and to do His good pleasure. Use it, don’t abuse it; furthermore, use it for the good of others or lose it! Invest God’s generous gift of power through a life of generosity. Relational generosity finds joy in connecting those you know and love with one another. Financial generosity invests resources in funding the work of God’s kingdom. And generosity with your time is free to volunteer your expertise and experience to serve. Leverage power for the Lord!
Prayer
Heavenly Father, unleash your power at work in me for your glory and for a generous life to bless others through Christ’s love, and in Jesus’ name, amen.
Application
Where is the Lord calling you to be generous with your relationships, resources, and time?
Related Reading
1 Chronicles 29:11-12; 1 Kings 3:13; Romans 11:36; Ephesians 6:10
Worship Resource
Carrie Underwood: Nothing But the Blood of Jesus
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