Gaining Strength in the Lord
By
David L. Mulherin
From where do you draw your strength? All of us, Christian or not must draw strength from somewhere. I know that as a Christian it is hard at times to stay strong. The world has a lot of garbage to dump on you. It does not matter who you are; you are going to get dumped on. I remember before I became a Christian, I was always trying to get rest. It seemed that no matter what I did, I could never catch up. There was always something or someone wanting me to do things that I just did not have time to do. And if I wanted to take time off to go up north (in Michigan) there was always lots of work waiting for me there. Does that mean that as a Christian I don’t have as much work?
Let’s talk about that. Believe it or not, now that I am saved I am busier then before, but there is a difference. As I started following the Lord Jesus Christ, He showed me that I had to change my way of thinking. Jesus showed me just much the ‘important’ things in my life meant. At one time I could not wait to get in off the road, get my boat and go have fun. It was fun till I started noticing how much time it took to keep the boat up. It has to stay clean and the engine has to stay in good running order. Plus something always happened to the boat trailer. Either the lights, or the plate, or both would get torn off at a bad dock, or there would be rim bent from the weight of the boat. Then there is the place up north. The grass needed to be cut or the trees needed to be trimmed. The hot water heater would go out or the pump would cause problems. Something always gave me more work.
Today I am still very busy. However, there’s a big difference. I no longer own my boat. Why? Because it stayed parked in the back yard and reminded me of how much time and money was being taken away. But it also reminded me of the time that I could be using to better serve the Lord. We still have the place up north. But I don’t go up too often because I’m busy on weekends with church. Just so you know, I don’t miss it. I love being in the House of God so much more. Better yet, I love being in the Family of God.
The Lord Jesus Christ has shown me just how unimportant material items are and how much more important my salvation is. I love the gifts I have from the Lord. But they do not own me. I own them. My life is not centered on my possessions. I now have my priorities straight. I have placed the Lord Jesus Christ first in my life and my family second. All other things fall to the bottom of the list.
How does this tie in with drawing strength? That’s easy: I draw my strength from the Lord. In Matthew 11:29-30, Jesus said “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (V30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” When you trust in the Lord, you are leaning upon Him. In turn, you gain strength from Jesus. All too often that’s easier said than done. I often beat myself up over problems that I can’t do anything about. Leaning on the Lord means turning every part of your life over to Him and not holding back. That does not mean that I am enslaved to Jesus, it simply means that I allow Him to rule my life. Jesus gives me the freedom to choose what I want to do and how I want to do it. Jesus also has work He wants me to do, but it’s my choice to do it or not. I will tell you this: if I walk away from the work Jesus has for me, I feel as though I have let down my best friend. More importantly I feel as though part of me is missing. I may complain and drag my feet if it something I really don’t want to do. But I will do it and I will do it with love because I know it’s not pleasing to my Savior if I don’t.
The Lord has made it possible for me to gain strength in many different ways. One way is to study the Bible daily. Prayer should always come with studying the Bible. These two are the most important tools you have in gaining strength from the Lord and they go hand in hand. The Bible teaches that you should have a prayer on your lips always. (1 Thessalonians 5:17 “pray continually ;) I find that starting the day in prayer is the best way. I also love to talk with the Lord as I am working. No matter how hard the work is, it always goes easier when I am talking with Jesus. I also believe that you should end your day in prayer. I start the day by thanking the Lord and I end the day by thanking the Lord. Praise and prayer go hand in hand. If you will just take time to praise the Lord Jesus for all the little things He has given you, you will find joy. In that joy is strength. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
I gain my strength by hearing the word at least three times a week, if not more. There’s Sunday morning, Sunday night and Wednesday night. I gain strength by the music I listen to. I listen to Christen radio. Why? Because the word teaches that what you put into your life is what will come out. Galatians 6:7 says “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.”
I gain strength from the giving of gifts the Lord has given me, like writing this article or preparing to teach Sunday school and then teaching it. By sharing the word of God or going to the hospital to visit someone. I gain a lot of strength from going to church camp every year. I take lots of notes and I try to write daily. The Spirit of God is so strong there that I never want to leave. The everyday things I do to gain strength make it possible for me to make it through each day. When I go to church camp that’s an extra boost like eating a high-energy meal. My batteries are charged and ready to go. So where do you gain your strength from?
7/23/02
THE MAIN STREET TO THE CAMPGROUND
The main street to the campground is the sidewalk running from the cottages to the camp store and youth center. It’s the boulevard of the camp. I enjoy walking the boulevard to see the bright shining faces of the young people. To see them talking with friends and smiling and saying Hi to the people they meet. To see them stop and pray with someone or just to give a hug and a word of comfort. They’re all so busy going this way or that way, coming up and down the streets to get onto the boulevard. There is such an excitement there that you don’t see anywhere else.
At the start of camp meeting everyone is busy looking up old friends whom they may not have seen since last year and busy making new friends.
As the week goes on they get settled into the rut of things, but they’re still happy and having fun. As the camp meeting draws to the end they start asking what day are you leaving and trying to figure out way’s to keep in touch till next year.
And in the middle of all these youth and all that is going on you have the youth of tomorrow running and playing on the boulevard. Going to the play ground, to the swings and slide and hurrying off to children’s camp with parents in tow most of the time.
Then there is the youth of yesterday. Busy doing the same thing they did when they were children and youth here at this camp.
1. Looking up old friends and finding new ones. 2. Lending a hand to someone in need and setting the mode for the youth and adults of tomorrow.
Next week when we are all gone and its just Bob and Sharon Moody here, I wonder just how lonesome that boulevard gets? To walk down from the office to the store and the roads are no longer lined with trailers, tents and people. All the busyness is gone and it is just one or two people all by themselves. Can you still hear the cries and laughter? Would you know that eight very busy days just went by with no telling how many people of all ages had just walked the boulevard and there’s no telling how many times they walked it.
Can you still hear the music coming from the tabernacle? Can you still hear the voices praising the Lord and it still lifting the roof off the tabernacle? How about on the other end of the boulevard? Do you hear the old tabernacle alive with the youth in their After-Glow meeting? Do you hear the children playing on the playground?
I think if you stop and listen you will hear the past come to life. One hundred and eight years of life and in that time there’s been a lot of changes take place. From the time of having to draw water and take it to where you were camping, and someone having to milk the cows twice a day to get fresh milk and butter for the people camping here.
Oh yes things have changed. Now one of the biggest worries is to keep the electric going so the refrigerators stay working to keep the food fresh.
In the midst of all this busy time, God finds a way to touch hearts and make a new beginning in someone’s life. To draw others closer to Him and to bring things to a stand still and take us back one hundred and eight years to a time without electric lights and speaker systems. And He shows His people that if we would just worship and praise Him and to let Him be in control, camp meeting will take place and the lost will be saved and the saved will draw closer to Him, when we are on God’s time.
So Bob and Sharon, when next week we are all gone and it’s just the two of you here. Take a walk down the boulevard. From the tabernacle, past the playground to the store and the youth center. And listen and remember that you made it possible for at least one person to find a place that he will want to come back to year after year. Because if it had not been for you and all the hard work you have done from one camp meeting to the next, this 108th St. Louis Camp Meeting would not have gotten off the ground.
May the Lord richly bless you for the work you have done and may your future be bright in the light of the Lord. And I pray that the Lord will provide us with a new director that will follow the example you have laid down before them.
With all the Love God has given me.
David L. Mulherin 8/2001
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