Power vs Powerless

Psalm 144

Of David.

 ¹ Praise be to the LORD my Rock,
   who trains my hands for war,
   my fingers for battle.
² He is my loving God and my fortress,
   my stronghold and my deliverer,
my shield, in whom I take refuge,
   who subdues peoples^[a] under me.

 ³ LORD, what are human beings that you care for them,
   mere mortals that you think of them?
⁴ They are like a breath;
   their days are like a fleeting shadow.

Back in the day, war was fought by hand. Hand to Hand Combat was the largest part of a mans weaponry. It could have been a sling with a stone thrown by hand. War could have been fighting with a sword. It could have been fighting with a spear. War was ugly and physical. Nowadays war is antiseptic. It is long range and is done with electronic weapons and bombs from miles away. So these verses don't have as much meaning as they used to. We don't know much about shields.

I'm not a fighter. I remember getting in one fight at school when I was in early middle school,  it was hand to hand.  Now most of my fights are with words. There is the same power struggle with words as you have with fists. You don't have muscles to flex, you have position and power. The only way for someone to WIN a war of words is if one person gives in. In our society that usually happens by the person with the least amount of power. The lowest man on the totem pole very rarely wins. That doesn't mean the person with the power is right, but POWER beats the POWERLESS. The one exception is when God is on your side. 

God is the great equalizer for the lowly vs the powerful. A person of low standing who believes in the Lord has all the power they really need. They don't need spears, swords, slings, guns, bombs or any other weapon of war. The greatest weapon you could ever have is God himself. "If God is for us, who can stand against us." There are many times in my life I feel powerless. It is easy to get depressed losing battle after battle to the powerful. But, take heart. I know who wins in the end. Praise God he is victorious.

Solid Ground?

Psalm 93 (New International Version)

 ¹ The LORD reigns, he is robed in majesty;
   the LORD is robed in majesty and armed with strength;
   indeed, the world is established, firm and secure.
² Your throne was established long ago;
   you are from all eternity. ³ The seas have lifted up, LORD,
   the seas have lifted up their voice;
   the seas have lifted up their pounding waves.
⁴ Mightier than the thunder of the great waters,
   mightier than the breakers of the sea—
   the LORD on high is mighty.
 ⁵ Your statutes, LORD, stand firm;
   holiness adorns your house
   for endless days.

If you look at todays headlines, it is hard to believe "the world is established, firm, and secure". You hear about terrorism, wars, governments overthrown, floods, tornados, earthquakes, tsunami's, drought, and whole list of disasters. But, the world is established, firm and secure. God's throne was established long ago and God will be here for eternity. It would be so easy to panic and to stress out over all the worlds turmoil. I can't imagine not having the Lord as my strength. What hope do those have that are not the Lord's. He has conquered. He is the hope of the saved. We can relax. We can be at ease through all disasters because of who we know. We know the Lord and have faith in his perfect power and perfect strength.  The Lord is more powerful than all these things. Those of us who love the Lord know the victory is won. We know that regardless what happens right now here on Earth, God is in control. God will reign!

Praise God for his victory over all things! God's power will last forever. AMEN!

Power!

Psalm 62 (New International Version, ©2011)

 ⁹ Surely the lowborn are but a breath,
   the highborn are but a lie.
If weighed on a balance, they are nothing;
   together they are only a breath.
¹⁰ Do not trust in extortion
   or put vain hope in stolen goods;
though your riches increase,
   do not set your heart on them.
 ¹¹ One thing God has spoken,
   two things I have heard:
“Power belongs to you, God,
 ¹² and with you, Lord, is unfailing love”;
and, “You reward everyone
   according to what they have done.”


I'm not complaining. I have no power over anything. I haven't really thought about Power until reading this verse. "Power belongs to you, God..." Their are powerful people in our community, and much more powerful people in our nation. Obviously, the president is powerful. Bill Gates is powerful.  I saw on the news that Donald Trump is considering running for President. Why? He already has more wealth and fame than he could ever dream of. I think it's POWER. He just wants the power of the position. I'm not sure that's a good reason to be president. Here is a phrase we are all familiar with:

Lord Acton, expressed this opinion in a letter to Bishop Mandell Creighton in 1887: "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men."

I don't necessarily agree with the last sentence. But, Power does have a way of corrupting people. Look at the issues our own Presidents have had over the years. When you are looking for Power, you are never really satisfied. People that are power hungry have to control everything. They have this insatiable appetite to control everything within their reach. That need drives them to do things that eventually lead to unethical decisions. Then there is a feeling of Power over the consequences as well. In my value system, God always catches up to these type of people. God has the ultimate power. God controls everything. People in pursuit of power are only fooling themselves. They never really get to control things. God does! Just when they think they have it all, God snatches it away. They don't get to take this "earthly power" with them.

Once you turn your life to God and you realize he controls everything, there is no need to pursue Power. The only Power we need is in the blood of Jesus Christ. Amen!