Why do people say, “When all else fails, try God?” I was listening to the radio and I heard a song that said something to the effect of, “When everything you have tried has failed, try God.” I mean, if you do not know God, I can understand this logic. For someone who doesn’t know God, complete and utter failure may drive her to her knees in repentance and confession. However, for a Christian (and this was a gospel song), God should be the first option, not the last resort.

I understand that I might sound preachy, but I promise that I am writing this to remind myself. There have been many times in my life that I have been faced with a situation and I tried to handle it myself. This sometimes resulted in victories that helped me to believe that I can make it on my own, which is a dangerous mindset for a child of God. Other times, I have tried to handle situations on my own and it resulted in utter failure, which led me to cry out to God to help me fix the mess I made.

I am not saying that we should not attempt to do things that we are capable of accomplishing. I am just reminding myself and you that rather than forgetting about God until we need Him, we need to factor Him in to every part of our lives. God wants us to depend on Him and turn to Him before there is some catastrophe that we cannot overcome alone. And, when someone comes to us with a problem, rather than feeling defeated and thinking, “The only thing I can do is pray,” we should victoriously claim, “The best thing I can do for you is to pray” (not my original thought, I think it was Oswald Chambers). So, rather than saying, “When all else fails, try God,” we should say, “God never fails, I will choose His way.” Ms. EV

So I was typing on my computer and I saw the power cord, and I assumed that because the computer was still on, it was plugged in, but then the red battery light came on. So, I looked at the power strip and it was plugged into the wall, turned on and functioning properly, but when I inspected the power cord, I discovered that while it was close to the computer, it was not plugged in all the way.

It made me think about my life. I go to church every Sunday; I attend and sometimes teach Sunday school. I pray and I read the Bible. I sing and play gospel songs. But, there are those times, and I am sure I’m not the only one, when I just feel drained. I feel powerless, even hopeless at times. I feel like my power, my victory, is fading. Usually, during those times, I am feeling tired and empty because, although I am close to God, I am not really plugged in to His power. I am simply going through the motions of a routine or ritual, but not fully experiencing His grace, His mercy and His might. I am not fully engaging in my relationship with Christ, which is why I start to feel down.

So, if you are feeling powerless, tired, uninspired, check your connection to your power source. Are you just close enough to see what your life could be like in the fullness of God? Or, are you plugged in to God and His greatness? Ms. EV