The Thunder

Recently I have heard many sermons and devotionals talking about the power of God and how we too, as heirs, also have that power. For some reason, I recalled some snapping turtles that we had seen propped up on a fence years ago. I remember seeing this huge creature and instantly, an old saying come to mind. “Don’t mess with a snapping turtle, it won’t let go until it thunders.” This made me chuckle. It is my guess that the thunder is suppose to scare the turtle into letting go. But then, I began to consider my walk with Christ. I began to ask myself. What is the snapping turtle in my life?

We all have that thing that just hangs on. Even when it thunders, we still can’t seem to get loose from its grip. It is there, holding on tighter and tighter, until it seems that it is going to choke us. Simply, it is the enemy. That is all that he wants to do in this world. He wants to destroy us, kill us and keep us from living a life with Jesus. He wants to keep us away from God’s will and living the prosperous life that we are promised in God’s Word.

We are told in Ephesians 6:12, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”

I then began to think of all the ways satan uses bondage against people to keep them oppressed and sinking under a heavy burdens; and I realized that all it takes to make satan let go is to understand the power they have as a Christian to overcome any bondage that satan may be using against them. This authority is given to us as followers of Christ. In Luke 10:19 Christ tells the 70 that are commissioned “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” Therefore the power is within because it was given unto us by Christ. When we accepted Him and decided to follow him, we gained what we would need to battle the enemy.

The enemy will try everything he can to keep us from fully understanding what it is that we have within ourselves. Once we really understand who we are in Christ, we can begin to understand what we have in our grasp.

This also brought to my mind the verse that is always quoted as “God will never give you more than you can handle.” God’s word does not say He is going to give you problems or trials. His word promises us power, strength, and peace when we face battles. His word says that there is nothing that we will face that He won’t deliver us from, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” I Corinthians 10:13. This says, that even though we will face temptation and trials, He will be faithful to make a way for us to walk through that hard time. In our sinful nature, we sometimes get ourselves bound up in sin. It is this bondage that will always bring temptation. God does not lead us into these sinful bondages, we do that on our own. Because God is a loving God and knows that our stubborn, fleshly self is going to get us in some muck, He is faithful to be there with a way out.

The wonderful thing about the power of God, is that it is not hidden from us. If He gives us power and He makes a way of escape, then He wants us to know how to be released from the grip of that snapping turtle that just won’t seem to let go. It is one thing to know that God is with us, but it is entirely different to know that God is within us. That is where the power lies!

So, much like the snapping turtle that supposedly doesn’t let go until it thunders, satan doesn’t let go until you release the power of Christ you have as a child of God, and call upon Him to release you from any bondage that you may be facing. The power of Christ is the thunder that will shake the grip of the enemy when he thinks he has a hold of us forever.

Let the thunder roll and see the power of Christ as you start walking in all that God has promised for us when His Son defeated death on the cross.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing