Unusual Places of Strength

These are times when people are running out of strength. The Lord is still our greatest source of strength. It is a season to seek the goodness of the Lord. Often it is found in unusual places. In a troubled land with a troubled economy God has answers. His grace is without measure and will even overtake us, as we trust in Him. Let’s say amen to His strength in these times.

Saul’s army was running out of strength because of the long battles (see I Samuel 14:25-30). They had spent years trying to defeat the Philistines. Saul proclaimed a fast during the time of battle. His son Jonathan was a great leader in the battles. As the men entered the forest, Jonathan, who had not heard his father’s command to fast, happened upon some honey flowing on the ground. He took his spear and got some honey on the tip and ate it. He was instantly strengthened. His eyes were brightened. The other soldiers informed him of his father’s command not to eat anything and his response to their warning was that his father had troubled the land. He believed the warriors were weak because they had not eaten freely. Jonathan was not dishonoring his father; he was merely stating what he knew to be true.

Even as we honor our leaders in these times, we also recognize that like Saul, they have troubled the land. There are ways of injustice that have troubled the land that are a result of choices our leaders have made. Many believers are in constant battle - in places of trouble - in many areas of their daily lives. Tragedy has hit our land with fierce storms. The economy continues to weaken. Strength wanes. Our land is troubled. We need to find new courage and new strength.

It is very unusual to find honey flowing on the ground, but it was in Jonathan’s path. As he kept moving forward, he found a source of strength in an unusual place. Most of us are programmed to think that our strength comes from a list of usual places. These are either places we have often found strength, or we have been told that these are the places of great strength. However, we will miss some great sources of strength if we look only in familiar places. Sometimes the familiar spring has run dry. We must be willing to look wherever God leads, and often as we open our eyes, we will see it is right there in our path.

When I think of the usual places that I have found strength….. they are many. I have found strength in church services. I have found it in conversations with close friends. Vacation or a few days away from the normal agenda have helped me refuel. When I have been sick, I have found strength in my doctor and the antibiotics he prescribed. All of these are greatly appreciated. However, they are not our only source of strength. They even have their flaws.

Millions of believers trust in Sunday morning meetings to give them the strength for the entire week. This was never meant to be. We are to daily pick up the manna. Where did the Israelites find this manna? On the ground. Unusual? Why didn’t it fall in the tabernacle of worship? They had to go outside the camp and gather it. I’ll let you think on that one.

All of our strength isn’t found within the walls of the church building. The river of Ezekiel 47 got deeper the farther it flowed from the temple. It’s power increased as it healed everything it touched. If God can ever get us outside the temple - the church buildings - then we will be a powerful people flowing into the realness of life... changing the region around us, shifting the culture, bringing the Kingdom of Heaven to earth.

Friends are great. They are a source of encouragement. Jonathan built a friendship with David that blessed their lives even in war days. It is one of the greatest friendships recorded in scripture. In our times friends can be a source of encouragement. However, sadly, it seems things have changed. The handshake that meant much fifty years ago no longer stands very strong. Our word seems to mean less and less. The friendship of Jesus is still as strong as ever. If we run to friends every time we are troubled we may still be disappointed. Friends were never meant to be our only source of strength. The joy of the Lord is our strength, and that joy is often found in unusual places. We just have to keep our eyes open to see.

I appreciate doctors and hospitals. They have helped me many times. However, as a pastor, I have been with families when the doctor would tell them the results of their work. Some of the saddest moments are when families are told that there is nothing else the doctor can do. All hope seems to be gone as they try to restructure their plans. I have known the Lord for forty-two years and I cannot ever remember Him telling me there is nothing more He can do. He has never spoke those words to me. This simply is not a part of His vocabulary. He always has an answer and within that answer there is strength.

So, where are the unusual places? It can be outdoors. It can be on the streets. It can be lying on a park bench watching the ducks swim on the pond. It can be lying in a field of mown hay looking at a cloudless sky. It can be while walking in the cool of the day at the setting of the sun. It can be in the place of trial. It can be while everyone else is talking that you hear a still small voice that speaks louder than the voices around you. It can be in the path of the forest or on the Appalachian Trail.

The apostle John was banished to Patmos. Some say it was barren and other historians say an idol temple was there. We might conclude that it was not a spiritual retreat. However, heaven was opened up to him. He received a vision that has blessed every generation. The vision of Revelation ends by telling us about eternity in a place that is beyond imagination. Revelation tells us that whoever reads this vision is blessed. Patmos was an unusual place to find strength.

A lame man asked Peter and John for alms. They were near the Jewish temple where the thick veil had been rent just a few weeks earlier when Jesus was crucified. Some would think the renting of the veil was a sign of the anger of God and that nothing good would ever happen in that place again. However, Peter and John told the lame man they were out of money but they wanted to bless him anyway. They told him to rise up and walk. He was healed right there and he got up and walked. He found new strength in the streets near the temple as he danced a new dance. Some would have thought that the lame man should have went to the upper room where God had appeared earlier in great power. It would seem that it was holier ground than a temple of ritual. But, for that day and for the lame man, the temple courts was the place of power and new strength.

God is always on the move. His places of strength are often unusual. Let’s not miss them. After Jesus calmed the storm, the disciples knelt on the storm-beaten bow of a boat and worshiped Him with greater passion than they had ever worshiped. That was an unusual place. Paul and Silas sang loud in a Jail with their hands and feet bound. The earth groaned and the jailer and his family were converted. That jail was an unusual place. Samson found honey in the carcass of a lion that tried to kill him. Elijah enjoyed the company of angels in the wilderness where he was often discouraged. David wrote psalms on the hillside with the sheep. Carcasses, the wilderness, and hillsides can be unusual places. Look for the honey on the ground. It may be at the workplace. It may be at the mall. It may be in your bed before you arise. May the joy of the Lord strengthen you in the unusual places. May you have eyes to see and ears to hear.