Strength to Manage Demanding Situations

The innate will to survive is human beings’ most enduring strength. When pain reaches a particular intensity, most people, motivated by fear of dying, seek medical help. A healthy body is one source of our strength. However when facing insurmountable problems, David declared in Psalm 28:7 that God was his strength and shield.

Habakkuk, the Old Testament prophet, made this declaration: “The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes me as sure footed as the deer and keeps me safe.” He could make this declaration because he trusted God always to be at work for his best good in every situation.

Strength comes from accepting the truth of your circumstances. As you realize that God is the source of your strength, alternatives for managing demanding situations become clear. Confidence that God gives strength to overcome each situation you face produces the will to love him completely with that strength. So be receptive to this truth.            

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The Lord gives strength to his people and blesses them with peace.

~Psalm 29:11 Good News Bible

 

Your people did not conquer the land with their swords; they did not win it by their own power; it was by your power and your strength, by the assurance of your presence, which showed that you love them. You are my king and my God; you give victory to your people.  

~Psalm 44:3-4 Good News Bible

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Strength to Transform Bad to Good

Strength is an attribute that’s admirable when fused with integrity and good judgement. Conversely, brutality inflicted on others to cause emotional and physical suffering is immoral. Brutality clashes with loving God with all your strength. This commandment embraces healthy mental, physical, and emotional strengths.

So strength has many components to call upon to equip us for overcoming desperate situations or inner weaknesses. Strength is infused with an urgency to display the highest quality of courage and grace. This is what happens when all the strength one possesses is transformed into action for the good of others and oneself.

What’s involved in loving God with all your strength? There must be a sense of gratitude expressed to God that demonstrates you’re indebted to him for giving you forgiveness and a clean slate. Realizing that God gave his most beloved treasure to redeem and save you should arouse such gratitude you can’t help but love him with all your strength. 

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The Lord is my strength and my shield. My heart trusts him. I was helped, my heart rejoiced, and I thank him with my song.

~Psalm 28:7 Common English Bible

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Convictions Must Include Tenacity

Personal strength isn’t evaluated by just the shape and size of body muscles, but by resilience, determination and conviction. Endurance is certainly dependent on body strength, which is an integral part of winning as an athlete. With determination, it's possible to push the body far beyond what seems humanly possible.

Determination and conviction motivate an athlete to compete against all odds, which reflects strength of character. Louis Pasteur, the French chemist, explains his determination to create safe, healthy food. "Let me tell you the secret that led to my goal. My strength lies solely in my tenacity." Tenacity defines conviction and determination.

William Lloyd Garrison explains tenacity: "I am earnest. I will not equivocate; I will not make excuses; I will not retreat one inch." This is exactly what God wants when he commands us to love him with all our strength. To run the race and win the prize is worth any sacrifice because the prize is Jesus Christ.  

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…I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day. What you have heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus.

~2 Timothy 1:12-13 New International Version  

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Determine to Win the Prize

Athletes come from all over the world to compete for gold medals in the Olympic Games. They come with determination and conviction to honor the games and their country. The pain and suffering caused by long, endless practice are put aside when it's time to stand on the podium to be honored as world class champions.

Comprehending what it means to love God with all your strength is comparable to what it takes to be an Olympic champion. To love God with all you are physically capable of being, coupled with strong convictions and determination, forms the standard to which Jesus holds us. Thus we avoid falling into mediocrity.

Hear the Apostle Paul’s words of encouragement: "Surely you know that many runners take part in a race but only one wins the prize. Run then in a way to win the prize.” Every athlete submits to strict discipline in order to win the prize. God instills in you the desire to love him with all your strength.                             

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...I’m singing my heart out to God – what a victory! ...God is my strength, God is my song, and, yes! God is my salvation. This is the kind of God I have and I’m telling the world! This is the God of my father – I’m spreading the news far and wide!

~Exodus 15:1-2 The Message

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Turning Back to God

Difficult and uncertain times call for confidence, not so much in our own strength and power but rather in God's desire to help. Confidence to grow and mature to manage challenging times can be a struggle if we fade from dependency on God and trust only in our socio-economic status and personal power to supply our needs.

This is a dangerous choice if it means facing every crisis in your own strength and power without God’s help. When confidence fades and hardships prevail, turn back to God. Isaiah 30:15 offers encouragement. "Only in returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved. Let quietness and confidence be your strength."

Believe these words for they will help you depend on the strength and power of God, who gives you strength and wisdom to believe and trust in him. He asks you to love him with all of your strength regardless of how small that may be. God will honor this and cause it to grow and mature.                         

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The Lord God is waiting to show how kind he is and to have pity on you. The Lord always does right; he blesses those who trust him.

~Isaiah 30:18 Contemporary English Version

 

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast.  

~1 Peter 5:10 New International Version

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Meeting Challenges with Confidence

Unexpected challenges periodically slip into our comfort zone to dislodge a well-ordered status quo. Strength of character can be defined by how we accept and respond to these challenges. There are times when a challenge seems beyond our ability to manage, but God promises to give us strength to endure and accept his good purpose for us.

Psalm 46:1 gives us God’s word for challenging times. “God is our hope and strength: a very present help in times of trouble.” When we've done all that we can do, we then turn over to God what we’re facing that’s beyond our skills and knowledge and wait for his purpose to be revealed.

So what is required from us as we turn over to God what appears to be an impossible situation? Trust is definitely a prerequisite for releasing into God’s care our deepest concerns. He provides faith to endure what can’t be changed, and endurance builds character that God approves of. What wonderful gifts!  

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See, God has come to save me! I will trust and not be afraid, for the Lord is my strength and song; he is my salvation.

~Isaiah 12:2 The Living Bible

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