Unbridled FaithSample

Ride Strong

Riding competitions have a way of highlighting our strengths but also our weaknesses. And if you are smart, you will use the critical information the judges give you to make your next ride even stronger. They may have advice about how to execute a walk or trot better, or they may correct your balance or your contact with the horse.

In the same way, difficult times reveal our strengths and our weaknesses. Trials in life can make our hearts feel tired. We know that God is in control, but some days it is hard to live it. The enemy strikes us where we are weakest, especially if we are already suffering with something else.

When you are under attack, the Holy Spirit can help strengthen your places of weakness.

For instance, I ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom in parenting because my kids are so different from each other. If I am uneasy about a parenting decision, I usually can reason that it’s the Holy Spirit warning me about that situation. And when I am about to react to something my child said, I try to run it by the Spirit first.

There are also times the Spirit gives me the strength to do something I know must be done, such as when I once had to let an employee go. There were legitimate reasons, but I still struggled with the decision. In the end, the Spirit helped me make the choice I needed to make.

Praying to the Holy Spirit for strength can make our rides stronger. It lets us emerge from our struggles more Christlike than before.

Lord, I know that I can do all things through You. And right now, I need Your strength, amen.