finding perfect strength in imperfect weakness
Be strong and courageous. Joshua 1:9
Where does strength come from? There are many ways we can derive strength. Some choose to derive it from anger, from a burning hatred and fire for their enemies, which drives them and gives them incentive to succeed and conquer. Some derive strength from revenge, from seeking punishment of their enemies and victory in their own success. Some choose to derive it from validation, from the validation of their peers and admirers, from their loved ones and from social media.
What does God want for us?
Perfect love drives out fear, for fear has to do with punishment. There is no fear in love. - 1 John 4:18
There is truth in this verse. Deriving strength from love is something that is difficult to master. We are not capable of perfect love, and much of our strength flows from our desire to survive in a world that is composed of wilderness. Our world is not a perfectly safe space, even as it has advanced in modernity.
Where do we find safety?
Often, at home, we should feel safe. Home is where safety should be, where we are protected from outsiders who could turn into enemies, from strangers who would sooner judge you and pray for your downfall than like you and want to be your friend.
But what if even your home isn’t safe?
The foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than man. - 1 Corinthians 1:25
We are imperfect and weak in our ways. Finding strength and safety in God is what God created us to do, and our very functioning centers around the mercy and love of God. Sometimes, we have false idols and obsessions, finding dopamine and oxytocin release from the materials and flesh of this world, but in time, we discover the fallacy of worshipping imperfect idols. We desire perfection, and there is no other but the omnipotent, perfect God who can satisfy our craving and desire for love, safety, comfort, strength, and wisdom.
For when we are weak, we are strong. - 2 Corinthians 2:10
We are lacking. There is so much we don’t know, and so much we could hope to know one day.
Often, this world is based on laws of natural selection. Survival of the fittest. We often fight wars to survive, when fear governs our perception of the people around us, and when competition is the very nature of our work. We forget that we don’t have to fight alone. God fights our battles for us. We don’t need to avenge ourselves. We don’t need to punish others. We don’t need to fight for our very lives, sustenance, and sanity.
God is here. The Triune Lord is here. And with Him, we can never go back.
To the days of ignorance. Manifested here is the doubled sided nature of knowledge.
To know, to be, to see, and to meet Him in the end and in the beginning.
The fear of the Lord begins with knowledge. - Proverbs 1:7
