Are We Afraid of the Power?

"I'm sorry Mrs. Hicks but it appears that you have too much scar tissue and the chances of you ever conceiving are slim to none." The doctor’s words washed over me like a dark cloud and dragged me down into the depths of despair.

We had been married for a while and weren't having any success on the 'baby making front'. This wasn't from any lack of effort on our part however. I just knew the doctor would be able to settle this for me. Oh, such utter disappointment.

In complete frustration I reached out to God. I knew there was power in Him. I'd heard it about it many times. To be honest though, I was downright fearful of it. What if He rejected me? What if I wasn't good enough? What if the power was too much for me to handle? I ever so tentatively reached out but I was just too scared to grab hold of the hem of Jesus.

Yet, God was ever faithful. He put me in the path of two Godly women who laid hands on me and prayed for healing in my womb. They stood in the gap for me and helped me stand strong. The power of the Holy Spirit washed over me. I plugged into that power while praying daily for a child.

In Mark chapter 5:24-34 we find a woman with a bleeding problem who had suffered for years and been to countless doctors. She not only didn't get well, she got worse. She heard about Jesus and knew there was power to be found in Him. When she saw Him, she reached out and touched the hem of His garment believing He could heal her. Jesus immediately felt power go out of Him and the woman was healed.

Now what if she had been too afraid? What if she had reached out but at the last minute pulled back because of fear of the unknown? She had been to numerous doctors and nothing had worked so far, so why would this?

Could she really trust that this time would be different? What if she hadn't reached out and had the faith to believe? She'd still be where she was, stuck in the same old pattern.

Numerous other people brushed into Jesus during that same encounter. Jesus never commented about power going out of Him when they touched Him. The woman put her faith into action. She moved towards Jesus and that's where healing was found.

Many of us reach for Jesus' power but out of fear we pull back at the last minute. Do we really want His power and the resulting change that might come from it?

The power doesn't come from just knowing about Jesus. We have to make the effort to reach out and grab hold of it. The Holy Spirit is active, alive and powerful! He is waiting for us to reach out, grab hold and hang on.

Move beyond the fear! This power comes by making a choice, not just by chance.

We need to make the choice to reach out willingly and grab the hem of Jesus. Latch onto that power and let the Holy Spirit work in and through you.

My oldest son is now 20 years old and is a constant reminder of the power available to us. Make the choice, reach out and grab hold of the power from the Holy Spirit!