One verse in particular has been on my mind. It caught my eye, and I have been working on it for a while now. I'm sure I've read this before many times, but never quite like I have this month.
Paul writing to the Corinthians:
My message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in the demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God. 1 Cor. 2:4-5
This verse brings me relief and challenges me at the same time. I am relieved as I prepare for Iraq, as I nurture my boys, as I work at the clinic, that I do not have to know or come up with the right words or phrases... the "magic words" that will bring salvation to someone.
I am challenged as I realize that what I AM called to do is to "demonstrate the Spirit." I have struggled with exactly what that means. I haven't completely grasped it yet, except to know that it isn't something I can do, but something that I must allow the LORD to do through me.
Demonstrate the Spirit... demonstrate the Spirit... demonstrate the Spirit...
This is my prayer right now... that the Lord would demonstrate His Spirit through me. My confession is that I'm not completely sure what that prayer really means. Possibly, that's a good thing because if I knew, I may not be so willing to pray for it.
I rest in the knowledge that I don't have to completely understand God's ways for Him to work in my life. Praise the LORD for that!
4 comments:
You are so right!
I needed to read this tonight.
This is a great post, Leigh. We need to see the power of God's Kingdom demonstrated in our lives and that can only come through the working of God's Spirit in us. If you were to ask Paul what would be the tangible evidences that demonstrate the Spirit, I think that he might answer something like, "Love, joy, peace, patience, . . ." I know that there is more to it than just those fruits in Gal 5, but that itself is a pretty decent (and sufficiently challenging!) start.
Can't wait to see you again in less than a month!
Thanks for sharing, Leigh. I decided to study 2 Cor. this summer, and I'm similarly stuck on the first couple chapters. I loved what you shared; thanks!
Reading through your blog, and I was struck by this post. It's funny how as I read through the verse, the part that stumped me was further along...how we are not to rely on the wisdom of men (which is so readily available), but on the POWER of God...wow, our faith relies on God's power. No wonder Jesus told us that we can do all things through Him. Thank you for posting this!
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