Friday, July 17, 2015
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All right, let's start with a little magic trick today. I need your imagination if you don't mind. Sitting on this table in front of me is this a paper bag, okay? Next to it is a glove. Here's the trick. My glove is going to pick up the paper bag. I have laid down the glove right next to the paper bag. Okay, "Glove, pick up the paper bag! Ah, Glove! Pick up the paper bag!" Are you surprised? Nothing is happening. Now it doesn't matter what I do, doesn't matter if I baptize this glove, get it confirmed or dedicated or rededicated. It's not ever going to pick up the paper bag!
But watch this. Here we go. Actually, listen to this. The glove is moving and it is moving toward the paper bag. Listen! (Sound of paper bag moving) There! Look! You've got to trust me, it literally is... the glove picking up the paper bag. Are you amazed or what? I can hear your applause. Well, there is one little factor I forgot to mention. I put my hand in the glove before I picked up the paper bag. It's amazing! All of a sudden that glove could do what, otherwise, gloves could never do!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Why You Can Do What You Thought You Couldn't."
Our word for today from the Word of God is one of the most amazing statements in the New Testament I think, Philippians 4:13, you may have heard it. "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength" Through Christ who gives me strength. Now, Paul has just been talking about the extremes of our life's circumstances. He talks about being in need and having plenty. He says I can do it, either one, whatever season through Christ. He talks about being well fed or hungry. "I can do it," He says through Christ. He talks about being in plenty or in want. "I can do it," through Christ. Now you may be facing a challenge right now that looks a lot bigger than your resources to meet it. Well, think about how this affirmation changes that equation! "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength."
A lot of people live with this negative voice that has been planted there by others their entire life. Maybe you can hear it inside of you. I call it the "can't chant," even though the story of the little engine taught us to say, "I think I can, I think I can." We have this voice that keeps whispering, "I think I can't, I think I can't." And maybe you struggle with feelings of inferiority, inadequacy, and it's held you down. It's held you back many times.
I remember seeing this refrigerator magnet. It was a picture of a dog and the dog was saying, "My name's No, No, Bad Dog. What's yours?" See, a lot of us have had that kind of negative input in our lives and we think that's who we are! It's torn down our confidence and diminished our sense of worth. Consequently, we miss a lot of mighty things God wants to do in us and through us because we think we can't.
Which brings us to the amazing glove trick! The glove is powerless to pick up anything. But the power of my hand in that glove changes everything. It empowers that glove to do what it never could do on its own power. Now, what God is asking you to be, (You ready?) is His glove. Recognizing that yes, you are powerless to do what He's asking you to do. You can't. You're right. But then trusting that Jesus can! He wants to put His hand in your life, your personality, your life experience, your abilities, your relationships, and do things you alone could never do!
Now, it doesn't say, "I can do everything." No. It says, "I can do everything through Christ who gives me (the) strength" It is not my strength. So the question is, "Are you willing to be God's glove?" If so, you'll go for what maybe you've been running from. You'll risk what you've been shrinking from. You'll run toward that challenge instead of running from it.
God wants to do His amazing glove miracle through you. He's just waiting for you to be willing.