Energized - Martin Wiles

For I can do everything with the help of Christ who gives me the strength I need. Philippians 4:13 NLT

He needed energy, but I had nothing for him.

I had watched Henry’s gait since he entered the building. His appearance was the usual for most students when they first arrived at school: not enough sleep, a late ball game, staying up beyond curfew. Henry fell into this category with unkempt hair, sluggish steps, and a blank stare, but on this particular day looked more drained than usual. As Henry approached my class later in the day, his first words were, “Can I call my mom and see if she will bring me an energy drink?” Without something, he was sure to fall asleep in class.

These days, as age begins to take its toll on my body, I sometimes feel like Henry: I need energy. I can’t do the things I once did—at least not at the same speed. Bones ache and joints creak. Although I eat healthy--at least most of the time--exercise, and take daily vitamins, I am not the man I once was.

Paul seemed energized. He proudly stated he could do anything, and he wasn’t such a young man when he said it. But his energy didn’t ensue from an energy drink, exercise, vitamins, or food. His energy came from God.

Even when my physical energy wanes, God will give me the spiritual energy I need to continue doing his work. I hope one day to retire from my profession, but I never intend to retire from God’s work. What I do for him might change, but he will energize me to do something until I take my final breath.

The power Paul had—and the power available to all believers--comes from the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. God’s Spirit takes up residence when we place our faith in Jesus Christ, but the power comes through being filled with the Spirit, which is not automatic. We must crave for God’s Spirit to consume us. We do this by allowing our bodies to be a holy temple and confessing to God that we desire to be all we can for him. Staying in His Word, prayer, service, and fellowship with other believers proves we’re serious about the request.

Let God’s Spirit energize you for the work God has called you to.

Father, I ask that you energize me with your Spirit so I can do the work you’ve called me to accomplish. 

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The Value of a Soul - Martin Wiles

So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God, he created them; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27 NLT

I had never heard such a statement—nor had anyone in my class.

A plane crash has just killed basketball legend, Kobe Bryant, his daughter, and several other people. Many mourned this tragedy, including students at our school. As I took morning prayer requests, the first two related to praying for Kobe’s family.

But one wise youngster said, “The plane had other people on it, too.”

And that’s also when the unbelievable comment followed: “But they weren’t important.”

The comment shocked me, initially, so much so that I couldn’t speak for a moment. Everyone else in the class experienced the same shock.

I could not help myself. The teacher and adult in me came out. “God may not have cared that Kobe Bryant played basketball.”

If I know God as I think I do, I believe He would have cared more about whether Kobe had a relationship with Jesus Christ, whether he was a good husband and dad, and whether he used his skills and talents to promote the love of Christ in his world. I made my point with the self-centered young girl, and I hope she got it. In her mind, Kobe’s value lay only in playing basketball well.

Value is a funny thing. Something can have value and hold no worth. The opposite can also hold true. Something can have no value but become valuable.

My wife and I often saw this happen at antique auctions. Occasionally, an ugly item would come up for bid but initially receive no bids. Our auctioneer friend knew the solution to the problem. “If you buy this, you will be the only person with one.”

Once he said that, hands shot up, and bids poured in. Suddenly, something that held no value sold for unbelievable money because the scenario changed.

Economics calls this supply and demand. Prices drop when a large supply of something exists, but no one wants it. But prices rise if a limited supply exists and many people want it. Value is not always determined by the item itself but by who wants it and how many people crave it.

Value works differently with people, too. What others think I’m worth doesn’t matter. The writer of Genesis said God created people in His image. We are not identical to God, but we resemble Him in many ways. We can think, feel, love, and show emotion. The image of God in us makes us valuable.

The value of a soul hinges on whom we belong to. Having God as our creator doesn’t necessarily mean we belong to Him. The connection comes through faith in Christ. When that happens, we enter His family and become His child, not just His creation.

My Dad’s hobby was woodworking. He built many beautiful items, but if they didn’t come into his home, they were only his creations, not his personal property.

Value is further determined by what God says about us. He says we belong to Him and that no one can snatch us from His hand. No person or circumstance holds enough power to overpower God’s strong arm that holds us safely in His care.

My young students confused identity with performance. In her mind, Kobe held more importance than the others on the plane because he had fame in the basketball world. God, on the other hand, says our value has nothing to do with what we do but with who we are. And in Christ, we belong to the heavenly Father. That determines our value. Our doing is only proof of our appreciation for what God has done in our lives. We serve because of Who has served us.

Don’t determine your worth by what you do, but by whom you belong to.

Father, may I realize that You determine my true worth through my connection to You. 

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Tiger in the Tank - Martin Wiles

In whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. Ephesians 1:13 NKJV

I wanted a tiger in the tank worse than ever—and I didn’t even have a tank.

Fake tiger tails were popular in the early seventies when I was a middle schooler. The mascot, the tiger, had first appeared for Esso in Norway around the turn of the twentieth century, but it didn’t make its United States’ debut until the end of World War II. In 1959, Emery Smith, a young Chicago copywriter, created the slogan, “Put a tiger in your tank.”

In the early 1960s, motorists from all over the world tied fake tiger tails to the gas tanks on their cars, which at the time were located behind the rear license plate. They also sported bumper stickers that read, “I’ve got a tiger in my tank.” More than 2.5 million tails were sold in the United States alone.

And I wanted one. Some Esso gas stations, which provided full-service care to customers’ cars at the time, gave away these fake tiger tails. Every time my dad drove to a station for a fill-up, I hoped the attendant would give me a tiger tail. He never did. Now, I have lived almost to retirement age and have never owned one. 

The tiger and the tiger tail represented a power source, but according to Paul, believers possess a better power source. When we choose to follow Christ, He seals us with His Spirit—sometimes called the Comforter or Helper. Christ places His inscription on the seal, and it cannot be removed.

God’s seal of the Spirit contains more power than any fuel I might put in my vehicle. Fuel in the tank gives out after I’ve driven so many miles, but God’s power never runs out. I may feel as if I’m running on empty when life’s circumstances get a little crazy, but I’m never without God’s energy.

God’s power source possesses enough content to get us through any trial we face—and sometimes they come with great intensity and seem to bunch up. But God’s power carries the momentum we need to fulfill God’s plan, regardless of what we must go through to see that plan come to fruition.

Perhaps the most comforting fact about the force which resides in us relates to the peace we have. 

This peace passes understanding, and we can experience it regardless of circumstances. It’s a peace we can’t explain, but can experience, nevertheless. A peace others who don’t have our power source seek.

When life seems overwhelming, remember the power source with which God has sealed you.

Prayer: Father, thank You for the power of Your Spirit that resides in us. 

Tweetable: Do you have the tiger in your tank? 

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Walk by the Spirit - Caroline Hales

So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. Galatians 5:16 NIV

Busy days can lead to feeling worn out. The last thing we might want to do is walk by the Spirit. 

Fatigue builds from fulfilling multiple requests. Another task, another errand, another person to visit. We keep going. Distractions bombard us—emails, phone calls, news. We can easily fall prone to focusing on ourselves. A yearning to live by our natural self gratifies the desires of our flesh.

Paul writes about another way to approach life. We can walk by the Spirit.

But what is the difference between walking by the Spirit and walking with our minds concentrated on ourselves? Focus. Focusing on the Spirit does not mean our physical world will change.

We live in a physical and spiritual world. We tend to conduct our lives with our own strength. Walking by the Spirit changes our approach to the world. We can set our minds on God’s way of living.

For example, in a conversation, we can withhold unloving words toward someone directing undeserved blame at us and speak words of grace instead by clarifying  the other person’s view.

We find rest for our souls when we walk in step with the Holy Spirit. When we remain in fellowship with Him and make decisions in line with God’s ways, we walk by the Spirit.

I think of walking by the Spirit as like leaning against a wall. The wall supports me when I rest with my back against the wall. Similarly, I can rely on the Holy Spirit for support. A part of leaning on the Spirit means I know Him and on whom I depend.

Spiritual support may include praying for the Spirit to help us love a difficult person, recalling a Bible verse about gratefulness, or thanking someone for their act of kindness.

By memorizing a Bible verse about Christlike behavior, God’s way of approaching a situation may quickly come to mind in our moment of need. Carrying the picture in my mind of leaning on a wall helps me to remember to walk in step with the Holy Spirit when I am prone to focusing on myself.

How can you learn to walk by the Spirit?

Tweetable: Have you learned to walk by the Spirit? 

Caroline Hales is a Project Manager, a student at Dallas Theological Seminary, and a freelance writer. She has an adorable niece in California who teeters as she toddles. Caroline’s passion to share Christ with others has grown while she has served in church ministry, leading evangelism and women’s ministry. She lives in Ontario, Canada.

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Living Triumphantly - Martin Wiles

And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory. Colossians 1:27 NLT

Until he drew the Excalibur sword from the stone, he was a back-alley dweller.

“King Arthur: Legend of the Sword” was a high-tech production with a plot I couldn’t follow. Arthur’s father had been murdered. His uncle, Vortigern, seized control of the throne and had Arthur assigned to back-alley living.

Vortigern increased his power by sacrificing people and feeding them to an octopus who lived in the bowels of the city. Arthur, meanwhile, lived out his days as a ruffian, not knowing his heritage. Brawling and vile living was his style. Until fate led him to grasp the legendary sword. Once the sword was removed from the stone, Arthur knew who he was. He defeated his uncle and assumed his rightful place as king of his kingdom.

Paul gives the secret of living triumphantly. Most of the Old Testament Jews had failed to do so. Perhaps now that the gospel was going to Gentiles, they might discover the secret those from previous generations had not: Christ lived in them.

Why anyone would want to live less than triumphantly, I’m not sure. But even though I want to, I often have not. Living triumphantly means I must die to sinful practices. In another place, Paul told believers to consider themselves dead to sin (Romans 6:11). Although I’ll never be sinless, I can live in such a way that sin is the exception rather than the rule. This is possible because Christ lives in me and promises to show me a way out of every sinful temptation.

I must also keep my body pure and clean—and not just with hygienic practices. As a believer, my body is a temple of God’s Spirit. As the people of the Old Testament kept the Tabernacle and later the Temple clean, I should keep all things out of my body that would harm it—physically, spiritually, emotionally.

Walking worthy of my calling is the other key to triumphant living. Arthur didn’t until he discovered who he was. I’m a child of the King too. God sees me as holy and blameless (Colossians 1:22) because I’m in Christ. Walking worthy of my calling means living out in practice the person I am in position.

Triumphant living should be your norm, and God gives you the power to do it. Lean on Him and watch your life transform.

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Prayer: Father, prompt us to depend on Your power so that we might live triumphant lives. 

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Flashback Friday - Inner Power - Martin Wiles

Inner Power

A rush of it causes people to do things they’re normally incapable of or wouldn’t otherwise do.

Part of the body’s flight or fight process, adrenaline is a hormone produced by the body’s adrenal glands during periods of high stress or anxiety. With an adrenaline rush, the heart rate increases, the blood vessels contract, and the air passages dilate. All of which increases blood flow to the muscles and oxygen to the lungs. Such rushes have caused humans to lift cars by themselves or to rush into burning buildings to save a life. Read more...

Tweetable: Where do you get your inner power?

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