Spiritual Strength For Each Day
“Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:16-17).
It certainly gave Paul great joy to write to the Thessalonians, “Your faith groweth exceedingly” (2 Thessalonians 1:3). Why had their faith grown? Through their continual “drawing near to the Lord.” The nearer we come to Him inwardly, the more our faith will grow. Of course, the path will be steep, and naturally, it will grow darker, but by losing our hold on the world, we will hold on to Him all the more. Abraham became strong in faith and gave God the glory. He was fully persuaded that what God had promised, He was also able to perform (Romans 4:21).
Or think of David. David experienced terrible disappointments and persecution in his life, but for this very reason he could also say, “I will love thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress” (Psalm 18:1-2). Where did the prophet Elijah get his authority? Solely from his attitude to the Lord, for he said, “I, even I only, remain a prophet of the Lord” (1 Kings 18:22). He was uprooted from all, but all the more rooted in the Lord.
