Press On... and Press In!!

By Becky Keene

In the previous blog, we were encouraged to press on, to “encourage ourselves in the Lord” and to set our face to the task. These are all good things, and making a determination to complete the task we have been given by the Lord is important, but where does God and His strength fit in to all this? Does He simply give us a task and we must simply power through it by sheer will? Or does He have a greater role in completing the task?

The greatest roadblocks to completing a task are, loss of strength, discouragement, lack of direction and attacks of the enemy. Let’s take a look at these and see what role God plays in removing these roadblocks. And even beyond a role, let’s take some time to look at who God is.

When we are given a call or a task, we often imagine God handing us an assignment, and say “Now go figure it out”. But the Bible says He will never leave us nor forsake us. We need to apply this principle to our call or tasks. He isn’t saying “Now go do it”. He is saying “Here is the call or task, now let’s go do it TOGETHER”.

So how does this perspective change how we view the roadblocks? If you feel yourself beginning to lose strength, through the cares of life, or even through the other roadblocks I mentioned, do you draw new strength from God’s presence? C.S. Lewis once said, “Its not the load that breaks you down, it's the way you carry it.” Do you carry the load in a way that drains your strength or are you daily entering in God’s presence and thereby renewing your strength?

Through the years I have found immense value in entering God’s presence daily. I have discovered, to receive God’s strength from it, you cannot see it as a duty, it must be seen as a necessity. Sitting with God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, daily provides all we need to deal with the roadblocks.