Power.  Everyone would like some.  Some would like more than others.  There are a few that would like it all.  Some feel like they have all the power.  The more people have, the more powerful they feel they are.  Power.  Where does real power come from?  We are born and have a little power to affect change when we cry or when we are hungry or when we need to sleep.  Our parents come to our rescue even when they are tired and preoccupied.  That cry has power to move people. But where’s the real power?

When we become an adult, others give us responsibility and with that responsibility, we gain some power to make decisions and affect change.  Our choices and actions or reactions can impact those we are around.  Choices produce powerful effects.  We tell employees to do something and things get done–or else.  Is this real power?  Does real power come from within?

I was reading about another power that transcends our power.  It is a story in the Old Testament about two warring factions–Israel and Philistine.  These two nations were at odds with one another and were trying to use their power to gain dominance over one another.  The Philistines went to war with Israel and secured a huge victory over Israel, even capturing the symbol of Israel’s power, the ark of God.  They took the ark of God with them to their own country and we pick up the story from there.

“After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. Then they carried the ark into Dagon’s temple and set it beside Dagon. When the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord. . .with his head and hands broken off. . . The Lord’s hand was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity; he brought devastation on them and afflicted them with tumors. . . But after they had moved it, the Lord’s hand was against that city, throwing it into a great panic. He afflicted the people of the city, both young and old, with an outbreak of tumors. . . So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and said, “Send the ark of the god of Israel away; let it go back to its own place, or it will kill us and our people.” For death had filled the city with panic; God’s hand was very heavy on it.” ‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭5:1-2, 6, 9, 11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The Philistine nation thought that the ark of God had the power so they kept moving it from place to place.  Little did they know that it wasn’t the ark that had the power, but God Himself.  The nation of Israel had the ark of God, but it did little in their hands because the Philistines captured it.  It wasn’t the ark.  It was God Himself who was and is the power.

On this journey, we need to be careful  who we put our trust in for true power.  It’s not us.  It’s not an ark.  The power for affecting true change is God.  Empower your journey with the true source of power–God.