“May you be made
strong with all the strength that comes from His glorious power, and may you be
prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to
the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in
light,” (Colossians 1: 11-12)
What is true strength?
Some would say large muscles. Others would say a keen and creative mind. And still others would say a robust bank
account, a powerful military, or a prominent position in society.
Of course, each and all of these can be “strength” to be
sure. Still, what is the truest
strength?
I have often been drawn to people who I considered strong
in the Lord. When I meet and minister
with these people, I am strengthened myself.
And I guess this is where I find the truest strength in this world, the
kind of spiritual strength that empowers others to have the same strength in
their lives, strength that perhaps they did not know they could possess.
Paul talks about this strength in our reading today. He talks of the strength inherent in
God. This is not a strength for its own
glory, but a strength whose sole purpose is to strengthen us in our lives. It is the kind of strength that allows us to
live with patience and faith amidst great pain and suffering.
I recall the faith that Dietrich Bonhoeffer exhibited on
the day that he was executed by the Nazis.
He led a worship service, went to the gallows giving thanks to God, and
faced death with a strength that his executioners could only imagine. While they claimed strength, they were
weak. And where Bonhoeffer seemed weak,
he was, in the Lord, full and strong.
Such is the way of God, which gives strength that the
world cannot fathom and which will overcome all darkness with the sparks of
light that God origins in us through faith.
God of might and power, grant to us the kind of strength
that will bring light to our world. Amen.
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