I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Philippians 4:13
As a parent, one of the things I try to teach my kiddo is that she can do anything.
Anything at all, if she works hard and doesn’t give up.
I try to live this way as well.
But man.
Sometimes life throws really hard stuff in the way.
I know you all know what I’m talking about.
There are days and weeks where we wonder if we really CAN do anything.
If we can make it through.
If we can take the next step.
If we can even get out of bed.
It doesn’t always seem like we can do “all things” as Paul says in this letter to the Philippians.
But, as it often does, the original Greek makes this verse even better for me.
Literally, this verse is translated as:
“I am strong for all things in the one strengthening me.”
You know why I like this better?
Because it puts my strength on God and not on me.
I’m one who likes to think about mind over matter and powering through and getting it done.
I like to try hard, push harder, go further,
And it’s really tiring.
Really.
But I am strong for all the things, not because I can muscle my way through them,
But because God is strong, and I am God’s.
So I don’t have to try so hard.
So I don’t have to work at being strong.
God is strong.
And I am God’s.
Say it with me: God is strong.
And I am God’s.
This means that when I’m at the literal end of my rope.
When I’ve got no strength left,
When it feels like I can’t go any further,
I don’t have to.
Because God is the strength I have, and I am God’s.
Now usually, I’m pretty averse to cheesy stuff, but this verse makes me think of the footprints poem.
I KNOW.
I can’t believe I just referenced that either.
But really.
Those moments when we are the weakest, when we don’t feel like we can do anything much less “all things”
That’s when God carries us.
That’s when God’s strength shines.
I talked about God’s power being made perfect in our weakness a few weeks ago,
And this is why.
Because God is strong, all the time, but we feel it most when we stop trying.
So stop.
Stop trying to do all the things,
to be all the things,
You are strong for all things because of the one who is strengthening you.
So we can just let it go.
God is strong.
And we are God’s.
