The Power in Our Lives | Loving Christ Devotional
The Power in Our Lives
Christ’s love provides the power in our lives. It fills us, encompasses us, motivates us, loves us. Let’s take a few moments to reflect on His amazing gift to us.
John 16:33 I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.
The Rest of the Story, an old radio show, had a host who shared different and unusual news stories. Then he would say, “And now the rest of the story.” After that, he retold the story from a different perspective.
For example, the host would tell the story of a densely populated low-income neighborhood in a low lying area of the city that didn’t have adequate drainage. When heavy rains came, the streets would flood and overflow. Streets would have standing water for several days until the water finally drained away. People in the neighborhood would criticize the city government for their lack of care and concern for the down and out.
The listener’s response would be, ‘How could the local government be so careless about the families there?’
And now the rest of the story:
The rest of the story comes from the local government. When the drainage system was put in 60 years ago, the low lying areas of the city were made up of homes with large lawns. The green space allowed water to soak into the ground rather than run into the drainage system. As the years went by, large apartment buildings were constructed with expansive parking lots. Flooding became a problem. In order to update the drainage system, the city would have to dig-up the streets and parking lots to retrofit the drainage system costing millions of dollars and interrupting the daily lives of the citizens that lived there. The mayor said, “We simply don’t have the money to do this.”
That changes the listener’s response dramatically. The listener begins to understand the complicated circumstances of the city infrastructure and gets a glimpse of the costly solution. Does it make either side right or wrong? No, of course not. It simply shows the different dimensions.
In John 16, Jesus tells His followers, “In this world you will have troubles.”
We can be assured that while we live on the earth, we will experience illness, pain, and the loss of loved ones; abuse, disappointment, and loneliness. Eventually, life on life’s terms will catch-up. That’s devastating.
And now the rest of the story:
Jesus told us this so “in me you may have peace.” Peace? Jesus in no way implies that in Him we will have no pain. Peace isn’t the absence of pain. It is something inside us that transcends the circumstances we see. Jesus comes into our lives and becomes the buffer between us and the world. Jesus says, “I have overcome the world.” The Lord is with us in all circumstances! Our trust is in Him, knowing that He will work out all things for our good.
We can look ahead in the Gospels to see that Jesus suffered: He was betrayed by His people. He was denied by His best friends. He was whipped, had a crown of thorns pressed into His scalp, dragged a heavy wooden cross through jeering crowds. Then, three days later He rose from the dead. He overcame the World! We take peace in knowing that Jesus went all this, then rose again from the dead.
We have that power in our lives!
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