Go with the strength you have !

Saturday July 10, 2021

Go with the strength you have !

Searching the Scriptures

Ah ! my lord, if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us ? Where are all his wonderful deeds, those which our fathers tell us when they said : Did not the Lord bring us out of Egypt ? Now the Lord forsakes us and delivers us into the hand of Midian. The Lord turned to him and said : Go with your strength, and deliver Israel from the oppression of Midian. Isn't it me who sent you ? Judges 6.13-14

I got to know someone called "the pianist of the ruins". This is a young man who lived in Yarmouk, on the outskirts of Damascus.

Ten years ago, during the "Arab Spring", this city was besieged, bombed. The surviving population has experienced fear, hunger, destruction of their property, loss of friends and loved ones.

One day, Aeham Ahmad was hit in the hand by a shell shard. It was then that revolt erupted deep within him and he decided to "thumb his nose" at war and hatred. He decides to carry his piano among the rubble and the gutted houses and he starts playing despite his injury, so that hope is reborn. The children gather and sing alongside him. The smile returns to their lips. The scene is captured by a journalist and it will travel around the world on social media. When his piano is burnt, he realizes that his life is in danger. He decides to flee. Today he is playing for world peace.

I was inspired by this man, his way of reacting to oppression. It is true that sometimes we can feel "bombarded" from all sides with disease, poverty, betrayals, bad news, etc.

In this period of repeated confinement, we can get bored, lose our tenacity, feel "worn out". Where are the songs that burst from the windows of buildings in the evening ? Are we going to stay hidden in our "ruins" or "hide in caves" with our complaints, our questioning and our accusations against God ?

The Lord ordered Gideon to lift up his head, saying : "Go with the strength you have." The apostle Paul, too, experienced hardships and yet... He did not let himself be defeated but continued to spread the Good News holding in his heart this promise : "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power. is accomplished in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12.9)

Listen to the voice of God

Let's take the time to listen to what God means. Ask God what he is calling you to today to make a difference in this world.

Praying is simple. Talk to God as you would your closest friend. God loves you and He can hear everything. Here is an example of a prayer : "Lord, as Isaiah said in the Bible, I too mean I am ready, send me."

Praise God

To praise God is to show Him our gratitude. Today, what are your subjects of recognition ? Take a moment to thank the Lord for this.

Act today

Now dig deeper into what you have received. What can you do to apply what God has told you ? Write down the concrete actions you can take.

Honor the Lord

Our route for the day ends. Let us pray together to honor our God.

"Thank you Lord because you equip me and you perfectly qualify me for the works prepared in advance that you have planned for me to accomplish, to advance your Kingdom here below. Yours are the reign, the power and the glory forever. So be it !"

Catherine Gotte Avdjian

Source (The Thought of the Day)