Trying to do the Lord's work in your own strength is the most confusing, exhausting, and tedious of all work. But when you are filled with the Holy Spirit, then the ministry of Jesus just flows out of you.
Interpretation
Relying on your own strength can lead to frustration, but divine guidance brings ease and productivity.
This quote by Corrie Ten Boom emphasizes the importance of spiritual empowerment in carrying out one's work, particularly in a ministry context. It suggests that when individuals attempt to accomplish their tasks solely through their own efforts, they may experience confusion and exhaustion. In contrast, when they rely on the Holy Spirit, they find that their work aligns naturally with the mission of Jesus, making it more fulfilling and impactful.
In practice
In a sermon about reliance on God, this quote can illustrate the importance of spiritual support.
We never know how God will answer our prayers, but we can expect that He will get us involved in His plan for the answer. If we are true intercessors, we must be ready to take part in God’s work on behalf of the people for whom we pray.
And our wise Father in heaven knows when we're going to need things too. Don't run out ahead of Him.
If you want to hear God's voice clearly and you are uncertain, then remain in His presence until He changes this uncertainty. Often much can happen during this waiting for the Lord. Sometimes, He changes pride into humility; doubt into faith and peace; sometimes lust into purity. The Lord can and will do it.
And for all these people alike, the key to healing turned out to be the same. Each had a hurt he had to forgive.
Today I know that such memories are the key not to the past, but to the future. I know that the experiences of our lives, when we let God use them, become the mysterious and perfect preparation for the work He will give us to do.
God never measures the mind... He always put His tape measure in the HEART
We have the idea that God is going to do some exceptional thing- that He is preparing and equipping us for some extraordinary work in the future. But as we grow in His grace we find that God is glorifying Himself here and now, at this very moment. If we have God’s assurance behind us, the most amazing strength becomes ours, and we learn to sing, glorifying Him even in the ordinary days and ways of life.
I am the wheat of God, and am ground by the teeth of the wild beasts, that I may be found the pure bread of God.
Let anyone laugh and taunt if he so wishes. I am not keeping silent, nor am I hiding the signs and wonders that were shown to me by the Lord many years before they happened, who knew everything, even before the beginning of time.
Faithful servants have a way of knowing answered prayer when they see it, and a way of not giving up when they don't.
Living for Christ is a day-to-day going on with Him. It is a continuous dependence upon the Spirit of God. It is believing in His faithfulness.
A faith that can be destroyed by suffering is not faith.
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