S3P3 – Strengthened by God

1 Pet 5:10

After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace [who imparts His blessing and favor], who called you to His own eternal glory in Christ, will Himself complete, confirm, strengthen, and establish you [making you what you ought to be].

σθενωσει

Psalm 84 tells us that “blessed and greatly favored is the man whose strength is in [God].”  Ephesians 6 tells us to “be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.”  According to Philippians 4, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”  We are not only blessed with strength but also called to exercise it.  If you’ve lifted weights, you know that muscle growth requires stress and tearing of the muscles.  Painful recovery can follow as the muscles rebuild, and the cycle continues.  It takes discipline and effort, but proper training can yield incredible results.  Also, training seems to become easier as one’s strength grows.  It is no different than developing strength in God.

This series’ verse gives us the promise of a blessing.  It comes after our spiritual training, which will include times of trial.  The strength with which God blesses us is then necessary to endure future trials.  It’s a training cycle. There are days of intense work and days of rest and recovery.  As we continue the cycle, we grow stronger and stronger in the spirit.  And it is this strength that God expects us to not hoard for ourselves, for our glory, but to use for His glory.  Our strengthening is not for us to be proud but for us to be prepared.

The encouragement is that we will suffer for only a little while.  Our lives on this earth are but a vapor, and some of that time will be trial-free.  We can rest assured that, as we tackle our sufferings in the correct spiritual way, we will be better equipped to handle future trials.  Whatever comes down the pike, God desires to use it for your good.  Open the door for Him to do that.