God Strengthens

The LORD is my strength and my defense.

Anxiety is exhausting. There can be many mornings when we assume we don’t have the resources to carry on. Too many sleepless nights, too many stressful days take their tolls and we can feel desperately weak. 

There are moments when it’s right to rest. It can be appropriate to change our circumstances to reduce the stress. Sometimes it’s good to take time away from our pressures in order to refresh and recoup. But most of the Christian life is about persevering, in faith, confident that God gives us the strength we need to carry on. 

The Psalmist knew that truth. He was “about to fall” but he came to know the reality of God’s strength. Strength for the day-to-day battles. Strength to live in the light of his salvation. And his heart was filled with praise!

Maybe it’s worth throwing in a word of caution here. God isn’t going to strengthen us to achieve whatever our minds desire. “He probably isn’t going to equip us to work an 80-hour week without getting tired or to have a home where nothing is out of place! Workaholism and perfectionism are not things he equips us to pursue. He does equip us for faithfulness, though. And he never fails” (p76). 

Maybe you’re not feeling that strength right now – maybe today is a day to rest – but why not spend a moment thanking God that his strong arms are underneath you and they are never going to give way? Maybe ask God to help you, by his Spirit, to keep going in trust, in his strength. Maybe commit yourself here and now to persevering with your eyes on Christ? 

Pray:

Father God, thank you that you are a strong God. Please give me wisdom to know when to rest and when to push on. Please let me rely on your strength and become ever more confident in your ability to enable me to persevere. Amen.

For more help to fix your eyes on Christ and find hope when facing anxiety, I've also written a book called Hope in an Anxious World. May it be a help to you  if you grab a copy!