Title
Strength(to do GOD's Will) 力量(去行上帝的旨意)
Date
09/06/2026
Description
PSALM 37:5 “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will do this.”
诗篇 37:5 “当将你的事交托耶和华，并倚靠他，他就必成全。”
ISAIAH 40:29 “He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.”
以赛亚书 40:29 “疲乏的，他赐能力；软弱的，他加力量。”
PHILIPPIANS 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
腓立比书 4:13 “我靠着那加给我力量的，凡事都能做。”
2 CORINTHIANS 12:9 “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
哥林多后书 12:9 “我的恩典够你用的，因为我的能力是在人的软弱上显得完全。”
NEHEMIAH 8:10 “The joy of the Lord is your strength.”
尼希米记 8:10 “你们要靠主常常喜乐。因为你们的力量是从主而来。”
ROMANS 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
罗马书 8:28 “我们晓得万事都互相效力，叫爱神的人得益处，就是按他旨意被召的人。”
PROVERBS 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
箴言 3:5-6 “你要专心仰赖耶和华，不可倚靠自己的聪明；在你一切所行的事上都要认定他，他必指引你的路。”
诗篇 37:5 “当将你的事交托耶和华，并倚靠他，他就必成全。”
ISAIAH 40:29 “He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.”
以赛亚书 40:29 “疲乏的，他赐能力；软弱的，他加力量。”
PHILIPPIANS 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
腓立比书 4:13 “我靠着那加给我力量的，凡事都能做。”
2 CORINTHIANS 12:9 “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
哥林多后书 12:9 “我的恩典够你用的，因为我的能力是在人的软弱上显得完全。”
NEHEMIAH 8:10 “The joy of the Lord is your strength.”
尼希米记 8:10 “你们要靠主常常喜乐。因为你们的力量是从主而来。”
ROMANS 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
罗马书 8:28 “我们晓得万事都互相效力，叫爱神的人得益处，就是按他旨意被召的人。”
PROVERBS 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
箴言 3:5-6 “你要专心仰赖耶和华，不可倚靠自己的聪明；在你一切所行的事上都要认定他，他必指引你的路。”
Creator
Pastor: Mike Koger
Contributor
Hillside United Methodist Church
3737 US 80
Phenix City AL 36870
United States
3737 US 80
Phenix City AL 36870
United States
Transcription
STRENGTH
(to do GOD's Will)
Psalm 37:5
Monday morning.
My coworker is out. I already know I will have a LOT on my plate - more than usual. So what do I do with a day like this?
My first instinct says: stay focused, get ready, and get out the door as quickly as possible. Just push through.
I had a plan. God had a different one.
God has a Word for me — not a to-do list, a promise: "Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him, and He will act" (Psalm 37:5).
That's the shift I need before I even turn on my PC.
A message is already brewing, and when Holy Spirit says, "Write," I need to listen.
I need to stop what I am doing and write.
REMEMBER THE MISSION.
I thought "strength" that morning meant staying focused on my plan.
But it seems God was reminding me that real strength is staying sensitive to His plan.
Sometimes missing the target you intended to hit is a blessing - because God is redirecting you toward the target that actually matters.
The purpose of this message is to help you and me gain the strength we need by surrendering to a Higher Authority - our Creator.
We are still growing. We are still learning. And God knows what we need for the next steps of our lives.
Jeremiah 10:23: "Lord, I know that people's lives are not their own; it is not for them to direct their steps."
We stay committed to the purpose, while remaining flexible about the approach.
That can be difficult because we get stubborn.
We think we have it figured out. Or we assume that because something worked before, it must always be the direction to take. But if you read your Bible... you discover that God does not always lead the same way twice.
We always have a choice. We have free will.
The question is: Do I choose to obey?
"I CHOOSE TO OBEY."
Ron Carpenter has said that obedience positions our lives to experience the blessing, order, and presence that come from following God's ways.
When His design becomes our pattern, we make room for Him to dwell.
Philippians 2:13: "For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him."
(elaborate)
This is important: Christianity is not simply, "Try harder to obey God."
It is learning to surrender to the God who is already working within us.
It is easy to have faith when you can see and feel the answer.
Real faith is when you do not see anything happening yet, but you thank God because you believe He is already working upstream.
Jesus: "blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
God gives us the desire and the power, but we still walk by the Spirit.
We listen. We yield. We obey the instruction we have today.
Psalm 37:5: "Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act."
Ephesians 1:11: "Before we were even born, he gave us our destiny; that we would fulfill the plan of God who always accomplishes every purpose and plan in his heart."
There is a purpose for your life.
But our purpose is safest in the hands of the One who created us.
Psalm 37:4: "Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart's desires."
Psalm 37 does not invite us simply to ask God to fulfill every desire we happen to have. As we delight in Him, He shapes our desires.
As we commit our way to Him, our hearts become aligned with His heart.
…and something begins to change: obedience moves from "have to" toward "get to."
PUSH motivation says, "I have to make something happen."
It relies primarily on willpower.
And eventually, especially when life does not unfold the way we think it should, we wear out.
PULL motivation is different. Something bigger is pulling us forward - a greater vision, a Holy Cause, a God-given mission.
Eph 3:9: "My passion is to enlighten every person to this divine mystery."
When you know the mission, it changes how you interpret both apparent success and apparent failure.
You can miss one target without missing God's purpose.
"REMEMBER THE MISSION."
As Jesus' time to leave this world drew near, He focused on giving His disciples His peace - peace that would carry them through what was coming.
We often hear world leaders speak of "peace through strength."
But for us as believers, there is another powerful reality:
"STRENGTH THROUGH PEACE."
When I know God is directing my steps, I do not have to carry tomorrow today.
I do not have to force every door open. I do not have to understand every delay.
I do not have to control every outcome.
I can obey the instruction I have today - and trust God with what comes next.
We weren't called to solve tomorrow's problems with today's strength.
? What is the first step to success in anything we want to accomplish?
"KNOW YOUR OUTCOME."
For Christians - for true believers - our #1 outcome should be the will of the Father. Jesus Himself showed us this.
John 6:40: "For it is my Father's will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life. I will raise them up at the last day."
Matthew 7:21: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven."
If the Father's will is our objective, (our outcome) then we must acknowledge that He owns the plan and the mission.
His plan may not always line up with how we pictured things happening.
1 John 5:3: "For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome."
True love for God expresses itself in obedience. And His commands are not intended to crush us under a heavy burden.
Last week we looked at Ephesians 4:23: "Now it's time to be made new by every revelation that's been given to you."
Tuesday morning, I had an amazing revelation. (It only took me 65 years to get this!)
LIFE IS MUCH LIGHTER WHEN WE LET GOD TAKE CONTROL AND STOP TRYING TO CONTROL EVERY EVENT IN OUR LIVES.
When we are "crucified with Christ," that surrender also includes our agendas.
Anyone can change temporarily. What we are after is sustained growth - being conformed to the image of Christ.
That transformation happens at the level of identity, and identity is renewed through revelation: God's Word and His Spirit speaking to our hearts.
Psalm 36:9 The fountain of life flows from you to satisfy me. In your light of holiness we receive the light of revelation.
We find our strength renewed when we put ourselves in the Potter's hands.
Weakness becomes a doorway through which God's Almighty Power can be displayed.
There is a divine, supernatural rest that gives us the freedom to become who God created us to be.
Psalm 37:5: "Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this."
Can you surrender it all to Jesus today?
"All to Jesus I surrender..."
We weren't called to solve tomorrow's problems with today's strength.
Isaiah 40:29: "He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength."
God Is a Faithful Finisher - God finishes what He starts.
Sometimes we become frustrated because things are not happening as quickly as we think they should.
Some things God develops over years. Some prayers are answered through a process. Some dreams require us to become the person capable of carrying them.
But our job is not to control the timetable.
Our job is to remember the mission, stay yielded, and obey the next step.
May God give us what we need - the strength and the power - to do what He has called us to do.
Today's lesson is simple: when we yield, when we rest, and when we trust the process - trusting that God is directing our steps - we stop wearing ourselves out trying to push life in our direction and begin to live a life pulled toward God's purpose.
Philippians 2:13: "God will continually revitalize you, implanting within you the passion to do what pleases him."
Monday morning, I thought strength meant staying focused on my plan.
Maybe God was teaching me that real strength is staying sensitive to His plan.
Sometimes missing the target you intended to hit is a blessing - because God is redirecting you toward the target that actually matters.
"REMEMBER THE MISSION."
-You don't need tomorrow's strength today.
You don't need the strength to control every outcome.
You only need enough grace to say: "FATHER, I CHOOSE TO OBEY."
And here is the good news:
you do not even have to manufacture the strength to do that.
"For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him."
The desire comes from Him. The power comes from Him.
The direction comes from Him. And the outcome belongs to Him.
So commit your way to the Lord. Trust Him.
And let God do what only God can do.
Surrendering Worry and Embracing Peace Prayer
Let's pray
Heavenly Father, we surrender our need to figure everything out.
We surrender our agendas. We surrender the outcome.
We choose to trust You instead of controlling every outcome, and we choose to obey instead of striving in our own strength.
Give us the courage to act on what You've already shown us - to take the next obedient step today, not when it feels comfortable, but now.
Give us the strength for today's assignment and the grace to trust You with tomorrow
May we remember the mission. May we listen when Your Spirit speaks.
And may our lives say, again and again: "Father, I choose to obey."
In Jesus' mighty name we pray. Amen
Strength isn't always pushing harder.
Sometimes strength is trusting enough to surrender.
(to do GOD's Will)
Psalm 37:5
Monday morning.
My coworker is out. I already know I will have a LOT on my plate - more than usual. So what do I do with a day like this?
My first instinct says: stay focused, get ready, and get out the door as quickly as possible. Just push through.
I had a plan. God had a different one.
God has a Word for me — not a to-do list, a promise: "Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him, and He will act" (Psalm 37:5).
That's the shift I need before I even turn on my PC.
A message is already brewing, and when Holy Spirit says, "Write," I need to listen.
I need to stop what I am doing and write.
REMEMBER THE MISSION.
I thought "strength" that morning meant staying focused on my plan.
But it seems God was reminding me that real strength is staying sensitive to His plan.
Sometimes missing the target you intended to hit is a blessing - because God is redirecting you toward the target that actually matters.
The purpose of this message is to help you and me gain the strength we need by surrendering to a Higher Authority - our Creator.
We are still growing. We are still learning. And God knows what we need for the next steps of our lives.
Jeremiah 10:23: "Lord, I know that people's lives are not their own; it is not for them to direct their steps."
We stay committed to the purpose, while remaining flexible about the approach.
That can be difficult because we get stubborn.
We think we have it figured out. Or we assume that because something worked before, it must always be the direction to take. But if you read your Bible... you discover that God does not always lead the same way twice.
We always have a choice. We have free will.
The question is: Do I choose to obey?
"I CHOOSE TO OBEY."
Ron Carpenter has said that obedience positions our lives to experience the blessing, order, and presence that come from following God's ways.
When His design becomes our pattern, we make room for Him to dwell.
Philippians 2:13: "For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him."
(elaborate)
This is important: Christianity is not simply, "Try harder to obey God."
It is learning to surrender to the God who is already working within us.
It is easy to have faith when you can see and feel the answer.
Real faith is when you do not see anything happening yet, but you thank God because you believe He is already working upstream.
Jesus: "blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
God gives us the desire and the power, but we still walk by the Spirit.
We listen. We yield. We obey the instruction we have today.
Psalm 37:5: "Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act."
Ephesians 1:11: "Before we were even born, he gave us our destiny; that we would fulfill the plan of God who always accomplishes every purpose and plan in his heart."
There is a purpose for your life.
But our purpose is safest in the hands of the One who created us.
Psalm 37:4: "Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart's desires."
Psalm 37 does not invite us simply to ask God to fulfill every desire we happen to have. As we delight in Him, He shapes our desires.
As we commit our way to Him, our hearts become aligned with His heart.
…and something begins to change: obedience moves from "have to" toward "get to."
PUSH motivation says, "I have to make something happen."
It relies primarily on willpower.
And eventually, especially when life does not unfold the way we think it should, we wear out.
PULL motivation is different. Something bigger is pulling us forward - a greater vision, a Holy Cause, a God-given mission.
Eph 3:9: "My passion is to enlighten every person to this divine mystery."
When you know the mission, it changes how you interpret both apparent success and apparent failure.
You can miss one target without missing God's purpose.
"REMEMBER THE MISSION."
As Jesus' time to leave this world drew near, He focused on giving His disciples His peace - peace that would carry them through what was coming.
We often hear world leaders speak of "peace through strength."
But for us as believers, there is another powerful reality:
"STRENGTH THROUGH PEACE."
When I know God is directing my steps, I do not have to carry tomorrow today.
I do not have to force every door open. I do not have to understand every delay.
I do not have to control every outcome.
I can obey the instruction I have today - and trust God with what comes next.
We weren't called to solve tomorrow's problems with today's strength.
? What is the first step to success in anything we want to accomplish?
"KNOW YOUR OUTCOME."
For Christians - for true believers - our #1 outcome should be the will of the Father. Jesus Himself showed us this.
John 6:40: "For it is my Father's will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life. I will raise them up at the last day."
Matthew 7:21: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven."
If the Father's will is our objective, (our outcome) then we must acknowledge that He owns the plan and the mission.
His plan may not always line up with how we pictured things happening.
1 John 5:3: "For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome."
True love for God expresses itself in obedience. And His commands are not intended to crush us under a heavy burden.
Last week we looked at Ephesians 4:23: "Now it's time to be made new by every revelation that's been given to you."
Tuesday morning, I had an amazing revelation. (It only took me 65 years to get this!)
LIFE IS MUCH LIGHTER WHEN WE LET GOD TAKE CONTROL AND STOP TRYING TO CONTROL EVERY EVENT IN OUR LIVES.
When we are "crucified with Christ," that surrender also includes our agendas.
Anyone can change temporarily. What we are after is sustained growth - being conformed to the image of Christ.
That transformation happens at the level of identity, and identity is renewed through revelation: God's Word and His Spirit speaking to our hearts.
Psalm 36:9 The fountain of life flows from you to satisfy me. In your light of holiness we receive the light of revelation.
We find our strength renewed when we put ourselves in the Potter's hands.
Weakness becomes a doorway through which God's Almighty Power can be displayed.
There is a divine, supernatural rest that gives us the freedom to become who God created us to be.
Psalm 37:5: "Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this."
Can you surrender it all to Jesus today?
"All to Jesus I surrender..."
We weren't called to solve tomorrow's problems with today's strength.
Isaiah 40:29: "He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength."
God Is a Faithful Finisher - God finishes what He starts.
Sometimes we become frustrated because things are not happening as quickly as we think they should.
Some things God develops over years. Some prayers are answered through a process. Some dreams require us to become the person capable of carrying them.
But our job is not to control the timetable.
Our job is to remember the mission, stay yielded, and obey the next step.
May God give us what we need - the strength and the power - to do what He has called us to do.
Today's lesson is simple: when we yield, when we rest, and when we trust the process - trusting that God is directing our steps - we stop wearing ourselves out trying to push life in our direction and begin to live a life pulled toward God's purpose.
Philippians 2:13: "God will continually revitalize you, implanting within you the passion to do what pleases him."
Monday morning, I thought strength meant staying focused on my plan.
Maybe God was teaching me that real strength is staying sensitive to His plan.
Sometimes missing the target you intended to hit is a blessing - because God is redirecting you toward the target that actually matters.
"REMEMBER THE MISSION."
-You don't need tomorrow's strength today.
You don't need the strength to control every outcome.
You only need enough grace to say: "FATHER, I CHOOSE TO OBEY."
And here is the good news:
you do not even have to manufacture the strength to do that.
"For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him."
The desire comes from Him. The power comes from Him.
The direction comes from Him. And the outcome belongs to Him.
So commit your way to the Lord. Trust Him.
And let God do what only God can do.
Surrendering Worry and Embracing Peace Prayer
Let's pray
Heavenly Father, we surrender our need to figure everything out.
We surrender our agendas. We surrender the outcome.
We choose to trust You instead of controlling every outcome, and we choose to obey instead of striving in our own strength.
Give us the courage to act on what You've already shown us - to take the next obedient step today, not when it feels comfortable, but now.
Give us the strength for today's assignment and the grace to trust You with tomorrow
May we remember the mission. May we listen when Your Spirit speaks.
And may our lives say, again and again: "Father, I choose to obey."
In Jesus' mighty name we pray. Amen
Strength isn't always pushing harder.
Sometimes strength is trusting enough to surrender.