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Maximum Strength

  • September 24, 2021
  • Posted by: Carolyn Mahal
  • Category: Devotions
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“For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.” – Psalm 86:5

Don’t you just love some of the claims that commercials make when talking about their product? It seems that to be competitive, companies feel compelled to change things up to draw attention and raise market share.

Some claims are weird – do I really care if the aluminum can changes colors to tell me if the drink is cold? Wouldn’t I have figured that out by picking it up?

Some claims are gross – a new line of cat food with an improved taste (makes you wonder who decided it was better and how much they got paid to do it).

Some claims are just untrue – “the Chia Pet makes a great gift.”

You see my point.

Another claim is for medications that are maximum strength. Whether you are suffering from a headache, a sinus infection, the flu, athlete’s foot, or sunburn, nobody wants to settle for less than maximum strength. The marketing director at any business would get fired for telling consumers: “Our product is merely adequate and we’re okay with that.”

What exactly is maximum strength? Is the product we’re buying as strong as possible, or as strong as somebody allows it to be? Think about how commercials tell you the product is the most powerful you can buy without a prescription. That statement alone tells you that you could get more, but to do so, somebody smarter than you must approve it. Some people accept this and go to the doctor, while others choose to avoid the hassle and just deal with the illness or condition the best way they know how.

Our faith relationship with God parallels this scenario. Ask yourself this question: Is my relationship with God at maximum strength or is it merely as strong as somebody allows it to be? Are you content to believe what somebody else tells you is true, or do you go straight to the word of God to discover for yourself what God has in store for you? Why would we choose to be an over-the-counter Christian?

How fortunate for us that we have a maximum strength God. He provides for us the fullest measure of love and support. Isaiah 50:4 reminds us that God sustains us, instructs us, and protects us from anything that would come to give us harm. We have nothing to fear when we stand in the grace and the power of our God. When times grow tough, He builds us up. When we are weary, He gives us power to endure and quiet time to worship and renew. He oversees our days, He knows what we need, and He provides us with every good thing in love; a love so great that He gave His Son to die and rise again to provide us with the ultimate cure for the disease of sin.

Seek the Lord in times of trouble and He will cure what ails you.

 

Devotion by Richard Schumacher

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