Thoughts for Life: #20 Do You Lack Spiritual Power?

Dr. Wesley L. Duewel: Over many a Christian leader's record could be stamped these words: LACKS POWER.

Why do so many ministers and lay leaders have a vague restless awareness that something is lacking in their leadership?

They have had adequate training; they make all the needed preparation; they work faithfully and hard. But it all remains largely on the human level. (Google image, Preacher and church)

God's work deserves our best, but God's work demands more than our human best. God's work always needs His supernatural touch added to our human best. God's work is a cooperative work in which He has called us to be His co-workers.

Our part is to supply the human personality and human effort at its best. God's part is to supply the Holy Spirit in all His efficacy and power.

But we are in danger of being better trained and equipped on the human than we are empowered by the Spirit, of being more skilled and more experienced than Spirit-anointed.

We can be trained to be adept in our leadership, skills, and administration. But we cannot be trained to be anointed and empowered. These are divine additives.

Perhaps the greatest lack in most Christian leadership and ministry is this divine bestowal, the Spirit's empowerment. We are attempting to do God's work depending only nominally upon God, but in fact depending primarily upon ourselves—our training, our personalities, our past experience, our knowledge, and our sincere efforts.

God has made every provision for you to have as much of the Holy Spirit's presence and power as you need to live and serve effectively for Him. He never expected you to have to rely exclusively on your own efforts and resources. He did not expect the apostles and first disciples to do so.

Don't plan and then ask God to bless your plan. Get your plans from God. Don't prepare and ask God to bless your preparation. First ask God to prepare you. First ask God to guide you—not in a ten-second prayer, but take time to seek God's face. Then ask God to anoint and empower you as you minister in His name.

We experience little of God's touch upon us because our asking for it is so casual and superficial. We recognize that it would be nice if God would bless our efforts and plans.

But if not, we are content to carry on in our own strength as we have done so often. We tend to be more concerned to perform our part creditably than we are about God's mighty involvement in our efforts. We tend to be more hungry for success than we are for God's empowering.

Christian leaders with a desert condition in their souls will experience no outflow of living water. Living in a minimum experience of the Holy Spirit will not result in overflowing spiritual blessing to others.

Spiritual blessing comes only from the Spirit flowing into and through your personality. Do such streams of blessing flow from your life? You can bless others no more than you are blessed yourself.

If you feel the lack of the power of the Spirit in your life and ministry, why not determine to look to God for His answer? There is no lack of power with God.

God longs to give His Spirit abundantly to all His children, and especially to all in Christian leadership. Do you hunger and thirst as deeply for the Spirit's presence and power as God hungers to grant this to you?
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Used by permission of the author and Duewel Literature Trust, Inc., Greenwood, Indiana. Creative reading style by Jean.

Ablaze for God
#20 Do You Lack Spiritual Power?
by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel
(pp. 78 - 82) ZondervanPublishingHouse

Our prayer today-

Father, as your work deserves our pastors' best efforts in the leadership in our churches, our request is that they'll desire Your supernatural touch to their ministry.
We are grateful for their training, but we know that there needs to be a regular anointing from Your Holy Spirit for empowerment.
Please remind them, and us, that You've made every provision for them to have as much of Your Spirit's presence as they need to live and serve effectively for you.
Help us pray for our leaders, as You don't expect them to rely exclusively on their own efforts and resources.
If they feel the lack of power in their lives, may they be encouraged to look to You for answers, and to find there's no lack of power with You.
We ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Today's Bible verses-

Numbers. 11:29 (AMP) "But Moses said to him, Are you
envious or jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord's
people were prophets and that the Lord would put His
Spirit upon them." (See also Luke 9:49,50).

John 7:38 (KJV) "He that believeth on me, as the Scriptures
hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water."

John 7:39 (NIV) "By this he meant the Spirit, whom those
who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time
the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet
been glorified."

Today's quotes-

~ Xochitl Dixon- "Sometimes, when Christmas rolls around, our days will overflow with joyful moments. Sometimes, we'll face loss, experience hurt, or feel alone. But at all times, God promises to be our light in the darkness, offering us tangible help and everlasting hope." (Taken from Our Daily Bread®, © 12/18/2017 by Our Daily Bread Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. www.odb.org)

~ The Perfect Present

To find the perfect present

Do you rush from place to place?

Do you feel time is against you

As you run the shopping race?

Ironically, the perfect gift

Is not in any mall

Christ already purchased it,

And it is free…for all.

He paid the price on Calvary

When He died in our place.

He took our sins upon Himself…

Redeemed us by His grace.

What better time than Christmas

To give Him thanks and praise.

Let’s worship and adore Him

As at the cross we gaze.

©Frances Gregory Pasch

Double Vision: Seeing God in Everyday Life

through Devotions and Poetry by Frances Gregory Pasch published by Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas.

Used by permission. Fran Pasch devotions and poetry

An old post of interest:

KAIROS, A TIME TO PAGA: Prayer Note # 36

Dutch Sheets gives several examples of Kairos times of prayer.
One was of a family who prayed fervently for protection while clinging to each other during a tornado . . .

Today's question-

What is Mercy?

Not getting what's coming to us; what we deserve by God or someone we've hurt in some way. Heb. 10:31 tells us "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." It's God's goodness, kindness and passion for us that we receive His mercy. He will not fail you when He hears your cry for mercy.

Upcoming posts-

Light Us Up!

23rd- Saturday's post by Lisa Buffaloe

#21 Depleted Spiritual Power Can be Renewed

26th- Thursday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel

#22 How Spiritual Power is depleted or Lost

28th- Thursday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel

Multiplied Generosity

30th- Saturday's post by Sheridan Voysey