Daily Affirmations - Day 1- Strength to Strength: Power in Weakness

This week's Theme: Strength to Strength

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Day 1: Power in Weakness

I watched in amazement and excitement as James extended first one foot then the other over the pedals of his wheelchair. Then, encouraged by the cheers, he drew one hand up to his chest. I stared in complete disbelief.

James has Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a neurodegenerative condition that leads to loss of movement and motor skills. Science and medicine have not yet found a cure or even an effective treatment for ALS, and patients like James not only deal with physical debilitation, but also with the anguish of a very grim prognosis. ALS patients know they will eventually experience full paralysis and the shut down of all muscles that control life and breath.

Along with two other friends, I became part of James' informal "check-in" team about two and a half years ago. Over that time, I watched sadly as the progressive decline of motor functions robbed him of of his few remaining physical skills, including his ability to communicate using a stylus on his tablet. Eventually communication could only be done with the help of an alphabet chart he follows with his eyes.

But now I struggled to contain my emotions as James proudly showed me the result of his perseverance through the difficult, tedious, and repetitive exercises he had been doing with a new (and reportedly very patient) therapist. I could hardly believe these were the same muscles I had witnessed stiffen and atrophy over the past two years.

The results of his hard work and the therapist's expertise were astounding. Over a short two-week timeframe, I watched James progress from moving one hand up with great effort— to moving both much more easily and quickly. By the time I saw him again, he was asking to have his tablet charged!

This is yet another lesson for me from James among the many I have learned as I watch him live in the daily reality of ALS. I look at his unflagging courage and quiet dignity, and I am inspired by his mental strength and unshakeable determination.

I am struck by how often I struggle to persevere—  by how often I fail to push through to build the "spiritual muscle" I need to move up to the next task. And yet I know that each next step is dependent on the one before, and that we move from strength to strength with each new success.

We are thrilled with "hero" stories, like that of David— a mere shepherd boy who defeated the giant Goliath, but we often forget that victories in God's kingdom are not about our "heroism", but about trust and obedience in the small steps that prepare us for the big battles ahead. David described to King Saul the process that helped him build "battle skills" through confidence in God:

Saul replied [to David], “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.” But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth.

When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God.

The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.” Saul said to David, "Go, and the Lord be with you" (1 Samuel 17:33-37).

I think of all the "lions and bears" I should face and defeat. And I think of how in the fear and the running, I do not allow God to work in me to build the confidence, the strength, and the muscle to face the Goliaths ahead. But James inspires me to keep going, with prayer, hope, and resolve. I am thankful for the example of my friend.

"It's a miracle," I said to him as I congratulated him on his incredible progress. "That's what he said," the aide replied. James smiled at us both as he raised his eyes towards heaven in acknowledgement of the God who is the power in our weakness.