“Stand at attention while I prepare you for your work. I’m making you as impregnable as a castle, Immovable as a steel post, solid as a concrete block wall. You’re a one-man defense system against this culture, Against Judah’s kings and princes, against the priests and local leaders. They’ll fight you, but they won’t even scratch you. I’ll back you up every inch of the way.” God’s Decree.
(Jeremiah 1:18-19 MSG)
When God commissioned Jeremiah as His spokesperson, God told him up front that it wasn’t going to be easy. However, God promised to “back [him] up every inch of the way.” Therefore, Jeremiah would be able to withstand whatever came at him, and his difficult experiences would only make him stronger.
There are experiences in life that can make us or crush us, make us better or bitter. But if we’re being backed up every inch of the way by God Himself, then like Jeremiah, we can expect to come out stronger. If things that would normally affect us are no longer affecting us, then it’s more likely because God has made us “as impregnable as a castle, immovable as a steel post, solid as a concrete block wall” (Jeremiah 1:18-19). The German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, said it well, “That which does not kill us, makes us stronger.” And stronger people are powerful people.
Praise God for using the hard times to make you stronger.
Rising with the Son 