REVEALING GOD DEVOTIONAL - STRENGTH FOR CONSISTENCY
Bless God for another day to share with you. Today I want to continue on the line of thought about consistency, which I titled “Strength for Consistency”.
Previously, I talked about how consistency is the key to breaking through any resistance in life or any situation that might seem impossible. I gave some examples, and I might add another one from a parable Jesus told in Luke 18:1-8. It was about a king who didn’t fear God or man, but a widow kept coming to him asking for help to avenge her enemies. The king initially said no, but because she kept coming every day, the king said, “Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me” (Luke 18:5).
It is not because you fail that makes a person a failure, but the fact that they gave up and never tried again. The scripture says, “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not” (Galatians 6:9).
In life, nothing remains constant except it has a source of energy. That is why a car with a full tank will need refuelling after a while of driving it; if not, that car will come to a stop. So if we must be consistent, we need a source of refuelling; if not, we will get weary and thus give up. The scripture says, “If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small” (Proverbs 24:10).
There are two aspects of strength needed for consistency in life: the physical and the spiritual. This is because human beings are made of the outer man (the body), which is the physical part of man, and the inner man (the soul and spirit), which is the spiritual and unseen part of a person (1 Thessalonians 5:23). These two areas of man must be fueled for there to be consistency. Jesus said, “It is written in the scriptures that no man shall live by only food but rather by every Word that was spoken out from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4).
Bread represents the physical food that we take into our bodies to keep us strong. That is why you are still eating even though you might now be all grown up and not growing in height again. We are all eating to maintain health and strength throughout our lifetime. We must not be too spiritual to the extent that we are not concerned about the kind of things we eat. Even after Jesus had just healed over 4,000 people, He still had to feed them so that they would not go away hungry and faint on the way. Jesus said, “I am moved with compassion towards the people because they have remained already with me for three days, and have not eaten anything. And if I dismiss them, I don’t want them to go away hungry from not eating, lest they might faint on the way” (Matthew 15:32).
Elijah had just finished demonstrating God’s power by calling down fire from heaven, and afterwards he prayed for a three-and-a-half-year drought to stop. But after that, a woman, Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab, threatened him, and he became discouraged and ran for his life into the desert. When an angel came to meet him under a tree — weak and praying to die — the first thing the angel did was to give him food to eat. The scripture says, “And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat” (1 Kings 19:5).
No one wants to live in this present world that can do without food, no matter how anointed they are. Nevertheless, if you must achieve God’s purpose on this earth, you cannot depend only on physical food; you also need spiritual food, and the only source of that is Jesus. Jesus said, “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me” (John 15:4).
For the Word of God to work in anyone’s life, a person must first have a relationship with Jesus by becoming born again. Then they can spend time fellowshipping with God through His Word and prayer. These two things are the sources of spiritual strength. After Elijah lost hope, though the angel gave him some food, the only time he really got back his spiritual strength was when he was in the presence of God, where He had an experience with God on a mountain (1 Kings 19:11-18). The scripture says, “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41).
We must not study the Word of God or pray religiously, nor must we do them only because we want our needs met, but to know God more. That is what is called fellowship, and that is what builds a relationship with God. Not too many Christians have a good relationship with God through Jesus even when they say they are born again. For many Christians, Jesus seems far away in Heaven, but He is actually with us on earth as well. Recall, Jesus promised He will never leave or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).
Therefore, every Christian is meant to have a personal relationship with God and not just a corporate relationship. This can only be done when we spend time praying and studying His Word. It is the amount of quality time that we spend fellowshipping with God through Jesus Christ that will determine our spiritual strength. And we must know that spiritual strength is far more powerful than physical strength. That was the difference between David and Goliath. David was depending on spiritual strength, while Goliath was depending on his physical strength. We certainly know that David, though far smaller in size than Goliath, defeated him. Have a blessed day!
Today’s Reading:
John 15, Proverbs 28---
Nevertheless, if you are not born again, you can do so today by saying this simple prayer below out with your mouth in faith, believing that Jesus Christ died and rose again for your sins.
Prayer for Salvation
Dear Lord, I believe Jesus died and rose again for me. Forgive me my sins and come into my life. I confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. Thank you, Father, for doing this for me. Reveal yourself to me today. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Congrats, your status has changed to that of a child of God if you said this prayer in faith.