I’m an independent person. I like to do things my way, on my time and, often times, without help. I’ve been this way for as long as I can remember. In school, I was the guy who would do the entire group project by himself, even if other people were assigned things, because I wanted it to turn out the way I wanted it to. I’m the guy who gets way more upset while playing ping pong than football, because ping pong is entirely decided based on how well — or poorly — I play. I’m the guy who would rather clean the house when his wife is gone because I don’t want her telling me how to clean. Now that I am writing this out, it sounds like I’m kind of a control freak. I probably need to work on that.
Here’s what I have found to be true for me in my independence: because I have done things on my own — and things have gone well — for so long, I have made my power the primary force behind the work that I do. And here’s the problem: when I am the primary force behind what I do, I will never be able to do the things that Christ has called me to do. Jesus doesn’t call us to do things that we can do on our own. He calls us to do incredible things that can only happen when we go with the power of his presence.
As we talk through the story of Joshua on Sunday mornings, don’t miss that. Don’t miss that the incredible things Joshua did. But way more important than the things he accomplished is the fact that he only was able to accomplish them because God was with him. God was the source of his strength. When we put our trust in the power of the presence of God, amazing things happen. People come to know Jesus. Addictions are overcome. Relationships are restored. Children are trained in the way they should walk. Work becomes your mission field.
Remember God’s words to Joshua:
“As I was with Moses, so I will be with you.”
— Joshua 1:5
Imagine how different your world could be if you lived in the power that you have access to through the presence of God. It’s time to stop living safely in the power we have, and to start living in the power of the presence of God.