Resolve: The power of God is at work within my will, but it does not take the place of it.

The Power of God and the Partnership of Obedience

Posted on by Michele Morin

Sometimes, afternoon lands heavy and hard. The morning caffeine has long expired, the daily do-list looms unfinished, and it’s clear that I’m going to run out of energy before I run out of day. That’s when the brownies on top of the fridge start crooning my name. The open carton of mint chocolate chip in the freezer has my number on speed dial.

Standing at the intersection of tired and tempted, there’s a collision that dissolves all my pious parsing of doctrine into a howl of dismay. “God, don’t you see me struggling here? Why don’t you do something?”

At the boundary line between will power and God’s power, I see what a courageous risk it was for God to give us freedom, for Him to release His beloved into the threatening territory of our own poor choices. Every day, we trust for grace in our battle against a custom-made constellation of sin tendencies.

And I’m wondering . . . how is this working in your life?

Paul’s New Testament writings reveal that he was no stranger to this fight against active disobedience, and he shares vital encouragement, cheering us on as we strive to “fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power. “ (I Thess. 1:11 ESV)

CaptureThe welcome mat is down and the door is flung wide over at (in)courage today, so I’m hoping that you’ll click here to join me and continue reading. Then, be sure to add your thoughts to the conversation about this paradox of engagement in which we take strength from God while also exercising our own will in the fight against temptation.

Also, don’t forget that you can sign up here to receive free notes from (in)courage, sent right to your inbox daily

I’m looking forward to meeting with you over there!

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Published by Michele Morin

Michele Morin is a teacher, blogger, reader, and gardener who finds joy in sitting at a table surrounded by women with open Bibles. She has been married to an unreasonably patient husband for thirty years, and together they have four sons, two daughters-in-love, three grandchildren, and one lazy St. Bernard. Michele loves hot tea and well-crafted sentences, poems that stop her in her tracks and days at the ocean with the whole family. She laments biblical illiteracy and advocates for the prudent use of “little minutes.” She blogs at Living Our Days, and you can connect with her on Facebook or Twitter.

20 thoughts on “The Power of God and the Partnership of Obedience”

  2. Oh so true on the ice cream on speed dial. So love how you phrased that. God giving us freedom when I read that reminded me of when we also let our children go. Little by little, we give freedoms, but oh how scary because we want to just wrap our arms and keep them safe. Even in our freedom, we can feel His arms and guidance. Thanks for sharing at Sunday Scripture Blessings.

    Peabea from Peabea Scribbles

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Great post Michele! Freedom, temptation & struggles…focusing in the freedom we have is the key…fine tuning our freedom lense to see the details of His strength in the temptation… takes away the struggle blurriness of the picture before us…its learning to bring His strength into focus rather than ours…don’t you think…
    Jennifer

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    1. Yes, “his strength in focus” must be the thing that carries us through each and every temptation. It’s a choice that we have to make whenever we’re in a challenging moment.
      So good to hear from you, Jennifer. This morning, I enjoyed a lovely cup of mint tea with my daughter-in-love at breakfast.

      Liked by 1 person

  4. Nice post, Michele! The power of freedom that leads to such dilemma!! And I so well know the tussle that takes place at “the boundary line between will power and God’s power”! Loved the expression.

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  8. LOVE this post. I’m reading Power of a Praying Woman and for the first time I’ve really looked at obedience and disobedience through God’s eyes. Very profound. Thanks for sharin. Stopping by from the Pits Stop 😛

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  10. Congratulations! Your post was my feature pick at #WWBlogHop this week. Visit me at https://www.marilynstreats.com on Tuesday evening to see your feature! All hosts choose their own features from the comments left on their blog so be sure to stop by and see your feaure. I invite you to leave more links to be shared and commented upon. Please be sure to leave your link number or post title so we can be sure to visit!

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