Dependent on His Strength

Dannah Gresh: Do you feel like you have the strength you need for your work today? If you don’t, Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth says you’re in a good place.

Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth: We are weak. Left to ourselves, we're not strong enough to do what God calls us to do. But He is strong.

Dannah: This is the Revive Our Hearts podcast with Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth, author of Surrender: The Heart God Controls, for August 15, 2024. I’m Dannah Gresh.

I’m glad you’re taking time to join us for Revive Our Hearts and to connect with God’s Word. Over the next twenty minutes or so, you’ll be reminded where you can turn for all the strength you need today.

Here’s Nancy, continuing in the series, "To Be Praised: The Woman Who Fears the Lord."

Nancy: We're continuing to walk through Proverbs chapter 31 and I've just been so encouraged personally and challenged by what we're seeing as we go verse by verse through this portrait, this "looking glass" of a woman of virtue, a woman of excellence. God is teaching me as I'm teaching you. I being enlightened and growing in my own understanding.

I just want to remind us over and over again that no woman can be like this woman apart from the Lord. Left to ourselves, we can never have the kind of heart that would cause us to give ourselves in a selfless, serving, sacrificial way that this virtuous woman does in Proverbs chapter 31.

And yet, I also want to remind you (and this is where I get such hope and that is) that any woman can be this woman, no matter what your background, whether you had godly parents as models or not, no matter what your season of life, no matter how much you may have failed or blown it. Any woman, married or single, can develop by the power of the indwelling spirit of God—Christ who lives in you can help you—to become this kind of woman.

And let me remind you again that the heart of the matter is not all the things this woman does. It's not all her activities, all her accomplishments, all her achievements, all her skills. They are considerable, but those things all flow out of a relationship with God. That's the bottom line. But we're not going to get to the bottom line for a while yet because it come up at the end of the chapter. But we know that this is a woman who fears the Lord. She's a woman who has a reverence for God, a trust in God, a holy sense of awe about God.

And out of that reverential trust and fear and love and devotion to God comes springing forth her heart for the relationships that God has put in her life. In this case it's a married woman. So her heart for her husband, her heart for her children, her heart for her home all comes out of her devotion to God.

You cannot be the woman that God made you to be, and I cannot be the woman God made me to be, whatever your calling and season in life, we cannot be that kind of woman—a reflection of Christ—apart from being women who have that growing relationship with the Lord.

That's why the most important priority, the number one priority, the core priority in your life and mine has got to be cultivating a relationship with God. You and I cannot be the women God made us to be and wants us to be and that we want to be, regardless of our season of life, regardless of whether we're married or single, whatever our calling is in life, we cannot fulfill that calling apart from a commitment to cultivate a personal relationship with God. That's got to be the number one core priority of every day in my life—to walk with God.

And you say, "I'm too busy, I don't have time to do that." If you don't have time to cultivate your relationship with God, then you're doing some other things that you shouldn't be doing. And we've got to just determine this is what matters: that I seek the Lord, that I know Him, that I get into His Word, that I get wisdom from Him, that I get the power of His indwelling Holy Spirit to enable me to be the woman He wants me to be.

Now we come today to verse 17 of Proverbs chapter 31. We've seen this woman taking care of her family's clothing needs and their food needs. She's making an economic contribution to the family by being thrifty and spending and saving and investing wisely.

And now this verse is pretty important, verse 17, because after all the things she's doing, we see that she needs strength. She's a busy woman. She's an active woman. She's a diligent woman. And she's probably at times, undoubtedly, a tired woman.

And so we see a very practical verse, 17:

She girds herself with strength
And strengthens her arms.

If you're following along in the New International Version, it says "She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks." Or the Amplified Version is helpful here, "She girds herself with strength [spiritual, mental, and physical fitness for her God-given task] and she makes her arms strong and firm."

Now that word "gird." "She girds herself with strength." That word means "to equip or prepare for action." She does what she has to do to be equipped and fit to do what God has called her to do.

And at different seasons of your life, that may look different. It's not always the same requirement for each season of life. But this woman does what she needs to do to be strong, to be equipped, to be girded up, prepared for action.

And we see a woman, not just in this verse but throughout this chapter, who works with energy and enthusiasm. She's not a woman who's dragging around. Now that makes you think maybe this is superwoman, this woman does not exist, there is no such woman; but God has provided His grace to strengthen us to do His will. Whatever I need to do the will of God wholeheartedly and cheerfully and willingly in any season of my life, God can give me the grace and the strength to do that. But I have to cooperate with Him in appropriating that strength and that grace.

I want to be a woman who works with energy and with enthusiasm. Now I'm not always that. You see me when I'm teaching and prepared and on the platform. But what you don't see are the behind-the-scenes times, sometimes very late at night, sometimes early in the morning, the long days, the long hours, when I am feeling very weary, under the pressure, under the gun of all that is required to do what God has called me to do.

Then this verse challenges me that I need to be taking some practical steps to strengthen myself to be fit physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually to do the will of God, whatever that requires.

It means I need physical strength. As long as God gives health, I need to be maximizing what He has given me physically to be developing a greater endurance, greater capacity for endurance. Now I am not a person who naturally is real interested in things related to nutrition and exercise, that's not one of the things that I have a lot of focus on in my life. But I need a little bit more focus.

My dad used to remind us that as Paul said to Timothy "bodily exercise profits little." But, he would say, "It does profit a little." There is no need on any of these things to go to excess or extremes or to have this become your god. But physical exercise, I'm finding the older I get, is important. I'm finding the older I get, the more important it is what I eat. I've found that I could live on fast food when I was in my twenties. But when I hit thirty, I couldn't keep living that way and have the strength to do what God had called me to do. So I need to take care of this temple that the Holy Spirit lives in that God has given me.

Some practical ways, if you find yourself just not having the energy to do the will of God, to be a mom, to keep up with those kids, to do whatever God has called you to do, I just say practically, watch your sugar intake. I found myself recently just almost on addiction to sugar. I had let things go and just took about a thirty-day period recently and said, "I'm just going to stay off the sugar." Through most of that period of time, there were a couple of exceptions, but I can't tell you how much better I started to feel quickly (after I got rid of the headaches from getting off the sugar). It was just a practical thing that I found myself having more strength and energy to do the will of God. That means that eating has to do with our ability to glorify God.

Physical exercise. I find that when I am getting moderate physical exercise that I have greater stamina, I have greater physical energy, greater capacity for serving God and others, I don't get tired so easily. We know medically and physically that physical exercise helps with dealing with emotional well-being and depression.

I'm not saying that if you are depressed if you take a walk that all of a sudden you won't be depressed. But physical exercise is one important ingredient in dealing with depression. Particularly, if you are a wife and mom, you want to have emotional strength and reserves to give to your family. If you are always living on the edge of depression, it may that some simple steps . . . Now, it may not seem simple to get up and take a walk. But taking some steps of obedience, hard as they may seem, may help to lift your spirits and make you more fit to serve your family.

When I have some moderate physical exercise on a consistent basis, it just improves my overall outlook on all of life. I find that when my body is disciplined, that I am more likely to be disciplined in other areas of my life. When I let this area of physical discipline go, you know what goes next? My tongue, I start wasting time, my temperament, my reactions, everything else seems to get out of control when I let my body go.

Now, this is not something that comes easily for me. I've found myself, particularly in the last couple of years, thinking, I just don't have time. I just can't fit this in. God has been gracious to put some people around me who care not just for my soul but who care for me as a person. I had a woman call me recently and she said, "I want to challenge you" (and she is a friend, a praying friend) "I think you need to go back to walking." I had put that aside for some period of time. She said, "I need to get to walking again, could we hold each other accountable?" We've emailed to each other and reported to each other. I did get my three walks in last week. The third one, I promise you, I would have not gotten in had I not known that she was going to ask how it was going.

I'm so thankful for friends like that who will help me gird myself for action, to be strengthened physically. The goal here is not to have a model's body. The goal is not to be a body builder or fit the world's picture of thin, tanned, and toned.  The goal is "whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God" ( 1 Cor. 10:31).

I want my life to bring glory to God. I've asked God to let me serve Him with strength until I'm eighty-five years old. God may not give me that many years, He may give me more years than that, but that's just something that has been a desire of my heart. That's how many years God gave Caleb to serve Him back in Joshua 14. I said, "Lord, would you just let me serve you with strength until I'm eighty-five years old?"

I want to do what I need to do with this body to have it fit enough to fulfill the purpose for which God has put me here on this earth so that I don't have to be sluggish and always exhausted.

There are seasons of life. I'm looking at some mothers who are at a season of life where you are going to be tired. There's no sin in that, but as God gives you opportunity and as He speaks to your heart, look for ways even physically to be fit for the task God has given you.

Nancy: Isn't it interesting how often the devil takes things that God created—things that are good—and twists and turns and distorts them to turn out in a way that God never intended them to be used.

Things like: beauty, intimacy, strength, food to name a few. These are good things. They are made by God, and they are made for His pleasure and our enjoyment. As we enjoy the things that God has created, God enjoys us enjoying those things. But how the enemy takes those good things and causes us to make gods or idols out of God's gifts so that we worship the gift rather than the God who gave us the gift. 

We take these things like beauty. God made beauty. He's the one that made a beautiful garden for Adam and Eve to live in and wanted them to enjoy the beauty. He made beautiful fruit, beautiful trees, a beautiful woman for the man. And yet, the enemy takes beauty and causes us to make it a god and to esteem it more highly than we esteem God Himself. So beauty becomes our pursuit rather than God.

Or God made man and woman for intimacy within the context of marriage and for us to have intimacy with God, to experience oneness and joy and fullness in that intimacy. But the enemy takes intimacy and makes it something we pursue out of season or in a context that's not pleasing to God.

Take this area of strength. God gives strength to the weary and strength to the weak, but we've made strength a god. And so much of our pursuit today of physical fitness is in pursuit of strength as an end in itself rather than saying the purpose of being fit—physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually—is so that we can have strength to serve God, strength to live a life that's pleasing to Him.

We're looking at the characteristics, the qualities, of a woman of virtue, an excellent woman. Verse 13 tells us (we've been looking at this verse for the last few days) that she seeks wool and flax and willingly works with her hands.

Dannah: Hmm, that is so encouraging. I want to put that into practice whether I’m speaking into a microphon or feeding animals at the farm or writing material for moms and tween girls. It’s all for God’s glory alone. I hope that message from Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth encourages you with whatever work you have in front of you.

Nancy will be back with part 2 of today’s program. First, let me remind you that during the month of August, we’re offering the booklet by Nancy Biblical Portrait of Womanhood as a thank-you gift for your donation of any amount in support of Revive Our Hearts. 

Ask about the booklet on biblical womanhood by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth when you contact us with your donation. To do that, go to ReviveOurHearts.com and click where it says “Donate," or you can call us at 1-800-569-5959.

We just heard Nancy share our need to lean on the Lord for physical strength. But we need a lot more than that. She’s back to continue teaching in Proverbs 31. 

Nancy: We've talked about being women who have strength in every area of our lives to do whatever the task is that God has given us for that season of our lives.

We've been looking at verse 17 of Proverbs 31. This woman, this woman of virtue and excellence, spiritual and moral character, "she girds herself with strength and strengthens her arms. "She equips herself, prepares herself for action.

We talked about being physically strengthened to do the will of God. Now, there are other areas where we need strength, not just take of the physical—but all in the emotional, mental, and spiritual. 

And if you're like me, and I know we all have this as women, there are times when we just get drained. We get depleted. And it's not just a physical draining. Sometimes it's just in the course of being and doing what God has given to us to do, we find ourselves mentally and emotionally and spiritually weary.

I want to just say that God has strength for us in those realms as well. The virtuous woman, the excellent woman will apply to God for grace in those areas.

One of the things we need to do as virtuous women is to identify things in our life that may be sapping us of spiritual or emotional or mental strength. What are the things that drain energy from us? We could actually do a whole series on this subject. But let me just note what some of those are that have come to my mind.

One thing that will definitely rob you of emotional and spiritual strength and physical strength is bitterness, unforgiveness, anger, unresolved issues in relationships. Where there is bitterness, no matter how wrong the other person may have been, you will suffer for your bitterness.

David writes in Psalms 32 about how, when he was bitter and did not have a clear conscience, how his physical and moral and spiritual vitality was just zapped. He was drained of vitality and energy. That's what unconfessed sin will do to us. God didn't intend for our bodies to hold up and our spirit to hold up under the weight of sin that we have not dealt with God's way. Complaining is something and ingratitude, these are things that will drain us of spiritual and emotional energy.

Worry and anxiety—these are sins. We may have a whole bunch of circumstances that explain why we're worrying or why we're anxious, but God holds us accountable, not for the circumstances, but for our response to those circumstances.

When we give into worry, when we give into fear, when we give into anxiety over whatever. It may be over the weather or over your children or over your job or over your financial situation. The world may be falling apart around us and when we give into anxiety, fear, and worry, we are zapped. We are drained of strength that God wants us to have.

I'll tell you one definite thing that I think drains a lot of energy and zaps a lot of strength from a lot of women, and that is that most of us are involved in some activities that are not on God's agenda for our lives for that season of life. It's not that they're things that are wrong in and of themselves, but it's not the season. Some of us fall into the trap of saying "yes" to everything and everybody that needs something done—whether it is at the church or work.

Some of you women are in the marketplace not by the will of God. Some of you are there by the will of God, so I'm not trying to put anyone on a guilt trip. I'm saying that you may be drained because you are working outside of the home at a season when it is not God's time for you to be doing that.

 

And you're wondering why you can't have all this energy and desire to meet your husband's needs and to keep your house and to meet your children's needs. It may be that you've committed yourself to one or more activities that you thought you had to do or thought you should do or wanted to do or somebody else wanted you to do, but you didn't check with the Lord first. We need to bring our schedules under God's control and ask Him, "What is Your will for my life for this season?"

And by the way, your husband ought to be involved with you in that process as your spiritual head. If you're overwhelmed in more to do than you can do, go to your husband. Even if he's not a believer, God can give Him the ability to give you wise counsel. Now, I'm not saying that every husband can give the spiritual counsel that you need, but involve your husband with you in that process of determining, "Are there things in my life that should be handled in another season?"

Well, the Scripture says that the joy of the Lord gives us strength and that if any one of us is weary and heavy-laden, we should come to Christ and He will give us rest, rest for our souls. I find that when I'm lacking in strength, when I'm drained (maybe because I really am doing the will of God, but I've been depleted in doing it that) I need to come back to the Lord and ask Him for strength. Do you know He can do that supernaturally for you?

I experienced that yesterday as I came yesterday morning to teach, I'd not had a lot of sleep the night before. I was physically and emotionally and spiritually drained. I prayed before coming into this session, "Lord, would You strengthen me to do Your will." And you know, He did! All day long, He's been doing that for me today. He can do that for you. If He needs to, He will send you angels to strengthen you as He sent them to strengthen Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemene. Ask the Lord.

You know, one of the gracious things the Lord did for me in the first year of the Revive Our Hearts ministry, the radio ministry, it was the toughest year of my life in terms of demands and strain and drain and stress. I found myself often very depleted and really leaning hard on the Lord. I'm still leaning hard on Him, but I just have such memories of that first year.

And one of the things the Lord did for me that was so sweet, for a long period of time and to this day it happens occasionally, but I would wake first thing in the morning and the first phrase that God would bring to my heart was that phrase from the little song "Jesus Loves Me"—They are weak but He is strong.

And you know I've grown to love that phrase because it was so good for me to acknowledge, as it's good for all of us to acknowledge that we are weak. Left to ourselves, we're not strong enough to do what God calls us to do. But He is strong.

And so day after day I found myself during that first year, and it's become much more of a habit in my life, a good habit, to say, "Lord, I'm weak, but I know You are strong. So be strong in me today. Strengthen me to do Your will."

And as we ask, as we wait, and as we depend upon Him, He really will give us the strength that we need to live lives that are pleasing to Him.

Dannah: That’s Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth reminding us to turn to the Lord for every type of strength we need.

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Do you have a heart for the poor and needy? You do if you have the heart of our loving heavenly Father. Nancy explains more, tomorrow, on Revive Our Hearts. Join us!

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All Scripture is taken from the NKJV unless otherwise noted.

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