“And Delilah said to Samson, tell me, I pray thee wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou mightiest be bound to afflict thee’’ Judges 16:6(KJV)
Every believer has area of strength and weakness. Failure to recognize this will hinder one’s growth and development in life. Our strength is our asset while our weakness is our liability. Growth and development in life is about growing one’s assets and trading one’s liabilities. As we trade our liabilities and grow our assets, we become more powerful and more useful to the kingdom.
One of the ways to grow our strength is to wait upon the Lord in fasting and prayer. “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint” Isaiah 40:31(KJV)
That one is strong today is not guarantee that one will always remain strong. Strength depletes if not built up. Satan as well as the demands and pressures of life drain one’s strength. If there is no plan or commitment to replenish and build up one’s strength one will soon run out of strength and wear off. As with the natural strength so it is with the spiritual strength. Satan is committed to weakening the believer and draining him of all spiritual strength.
In fact a strong believer is a threat to the devil. He will do everything within his power to weaken the believer. Temptation, trial, persecution and the challenge he throws at us are part of his skimming to drain our spiritual stamina. One must not be ignorant of Satan’s devices.
It is expedient that the believer recognize his strength so he can protect and develop it. The secret of the believer’s strength lies in his constant communion with God in prayer, his meditation in the word (Colossians 3:16), his fellowship with the brethren, for iron sharpens iron, and his intimate walk with the Holy Spirit. God said to Joshua, “this book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shall meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then thou shall make thy way prosperous, and then thou shall have good success’’ Joshua 1:8(KJV)
Knowing one’s strength is one thing, knowing the secret of one’s strength is another and then protecting one’s strength is yet another important factor to consider. It is obvious Samson knew his strength was in his covenant of Nazareth. He also knew the secret of his strength that the hair should not be shaved but he was so careless and vulnerable that he yielded to the seduction of Delilah. He could not protect his strength.
Like Delilah, Satan does not mean well for us, his mission is to steal, kill and destroy. We must not yield to his tricks and subtle advances.
PRAYER: Oh lord, protect me from the maneuvers of the devil.
Rev. Vincent Diolu
