Our congregation worked on a community clean up/fix up program in a poor neighborhood this past week. Each day, Monday through Friday, a group of fifteen to twenty-five people met at the church for breakfast and devotions before heading out to work. The first day was brutally hot, and the work was hard, dirty, and challenging.

I was asked to lead the morning devotions, so I planned a series of talks on the theme of spiritual power, using my collection of battery powered tools as examples of how each tool is very capable, but useless without the battery. Each morning, I’d show a tool (Bare Tool), describe its features, then talk about the need for power to make the tool work. I found 254 mentions of the word “power” in the Bible as I did my preparation.

Satan hates it when I answer the call to speak on Biblical truth. The weekend before the project, I started having trouble sleeping. Usually I sleep right through the night. But this week, my CPAP mask (for sleep apnea) would start leaking at 2:00 AM, and I’d have to remove it. I started getting congested; my sinuses were swollen. I lost my energy, and by mid-week I was having some trouble breathing. I thought maybe COVID had returned. 

Yet, every morning, after I dragged myself out of bed, exercised, prayed, and drove to church, I became fully energized. I spoke with great freedom and enthusiasm, prayed powerfully, and sent the team off with confidence from the Word that their ability to do God’s work had been fully met by the power of His Spirit.

Then I’d go home, collapse in my chair, exhausted and feeling unwell. This went on all week long. Yet, on Friday, after my task was done, I came home and did all the chores and lawn care, the congestion subsided, and I slept all night.

You see, though Satan tried to prevent me from encouraging God’s servants, God provided me with just enough strength to do what He called me to do. The following verse was our daily benediction; a great promise of providential sufficiency.

Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV) Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

(See “Bare Tools” for more on this topic)