Power and Strength

He gives power to the weak
and strength to the powerless.
Isaiah 40:29 (NLT)

I received one of my regular email devotions a couple of mornings ago, which had this verse at the top of the page and I knew immediately that it was from God to me. It has been a busy week culminating with my last speaking gig of the year yesterday afternoon. It was not as if I was unprepared because I have been working on my talk for several weeks. But life got in the way with Thanksgiving and Dad visiting us for a few days. After taking him to the airport, I dug into preparations for the event. Part of my talk included some of my Christmas decorations so I had to unpack them and that led to decorating the house. It was crazy! And in the middle of all this was our Believing God study. (We learned about Gilgal; I still have some thinking and processing over this one but it stirred me in amazing ways. Stay tuned.) I was up early and to bed late. When I woke with that headache on Wednesday, this verse described exactly how I was feeling—weak and powerless. But it also provided the antidote for those feelings—He was the one with the power and strength. And the best part was that He would give it to me. I am convinced that the enemy was sitting on my shoulder whispering in my ear that I could not do it. But God is mightier and able to squash him like a bug and He sent me His message of encouragement and promise that He would handle it. I am happy to report that God was the speaker yesterday; I was just the earthen vessel as we shared encouragement and hope for this Christmas season. As you enter into this busy time, remember that all the festivities, decorations, parties, and presents are just stuff. Spend some time reflecting on that Baby born so long ago—just for you!