Need and Power

Need and Power. I was spending some time in Luke chapter nine this morning. As I was reading about how Jesus gave the disciples authority for deliverance, power for healing and command for preaching, the command for taking nothing with them stood out to me. They were told to take nothing with them for comfort or their own provision.

Think about that. How often do we wait to act until we feel we've prepared enough, trained enough, saved enough? They were sent out in such a way that they were completely at the mercy of the provision of the Lord directly and through other people. I have never been an advocate of asceticism (the belief that you need to be completely poor to follow Jesus), but it makes me wonder if there is a connection between need and power. God is always leading us to a place of trusting Him more. He wants us to trust Him with our emotions, trust Him with our future, trust Him with our children, trust Him with our careers.

If the disciples had been sent out with the normal travel provisions, they would have been looking for the normal things to happen. Instead they walked expecting the supernatural...looking for it to happen. And if it didn't happen, they would be hungry, cold and hurting.

Perhaps with our finances being blown up the last few years, God is again trying to get us to trust Him with more. So I guess the end result will be based on: are we simply looking to get our old broken ways back, or are we looking for the supernatural breakthrough of the Kingdom of God in our lives? What is your "more" that you need to trust Him with? Do you believe that God can meet you there? Is it ok to let go of the old to make room for the new?

What was the result of the disciples obedience and trust?
Luke 9:6 (TNIV) So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.

and

Luke 10:17 (TNIV) The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”

Those things that you think you have no power over, those things that you say "oh that's just how I am" or "I can't help how I feel" all of a sudden the power of those things is broken off of you as the Kingdom of God comes in power through His Spirit.

Trust Him with more today.