Day 540 - December 7 - Exercising Authority

I have had a song stuck in my head for the last day or so, a Scripture memory song my wife used to sing with her friends. It's based on the words of Jesus in Luke 10:19, and goes -

"I have given you authority
to trample on snakes and scorpions;
and to overcome all the power of the enemy."

Which is pretty much not just based on Luke 10:19, it is Luke 10:19 (which I guess is why they call them "Scripture memory songs"). The passage is part of the story of Jesus sending out 72 people to proclaim Him prior to His arrival at wherever He's going next, and it's the place where we get the passage about the harvest being plenty but the laborers being few. You can read it by clicking here, if you like.

I have two thoughts about this. First, I find it interesting that our culture is quick to dissect out the part of this story that talks about the harvest and the laborers, but not so quick to incorporate Jesus' statement in verses eight and nine where He tells these guys to heal the sick in the towns they enter. It's almost like we, as a church, love to acknowledge the authority God vests in His disciples, just as long as there doesn't have to be any visible demonstration of that authority. Jesus tells these guys to go out and enter the harvest and do visible signs of power wherever they go, and yet we don't do that - we say "well, God can do that if He wills it" instead. Which, to my way of thinking, is a bit like me telling one of my controllers to do something and having them say back to me, "you do it if you want it done".

Let's think about that for a second. Why would we want to take the responsibility part of that story without also taking the authority part? It seems to me that we want to have the "authority" but without any accountability regarding the results - in other words, as long as it looks like we're doing God's work, we're good with that. Just don't expect us to actually show you any proof of our authority.

I said I had two thoughts about it - here's the other one. I've noticed that while Jesus says to these followers "I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions, and to overcome all the power of the enemy", I don't seem to be able to muster enough authority to trample on "I'm grumpy because I'm not getting my way". Sure, it's great that I have authority to walk on snakes - but I could use the authority to crush out my depression, or to actually demonstrate my love for my family instead of being so self-centered. But those things seem to be as far out of my reach as does me suddenly becoming the 'Crocodile Hunter' and playing with all sorts of venomous critters without getting stung or bitten. Crikey, mates - I don't think that's going to happen!

And that gets me to thinking about how at work, many managers don't actually exercise the authority that's been given to them. They get plowed over by the union, or their employees, either because they don't know the rules which establish their authority, or because they don't want to cause a fuss, or a myriad of other reasons, but the bottom line is that they throw away the authority the FAA has given them. Which irritates me no end at work!

But here I am, doing the same thing inside myself. Now, the usual response to the question "how can I learn to exercise my authority?" at work is "just start doing it". Yes, we train people in that, but all the training in the world won't help if you're not willing to act on it. You have to start doing, not just learning.

So these days, I'm trying to exercise my authority to trample on frustration, and on sorrow, and on hopelessness and despair. I've been given the authority to do so - to fail to do so is to reject my Master's will.

As for Connor, he is healthy and balanced and confident in God's coming healing of his body. Yesterday we went over the mountain to Allie's house (you can see her story here) for a visit, and Connor was such an encouragement to her as we visited for a little while. I was so impressed by this young man and all he seems able to handle that is so far beyond what I could manage. It was great to see him encouraging and comforting her as she tries to deal with her own situation.

Thank you for continuing to journey with us. Please be praying that God would strengthen our faith, that we would be able to remain steadfast in the face of each day, and that God would renew our strength. And of course, please help me in trusting God for Connor's full restoration. Pray that we would focus on, and see, God's provision instead of our daily situation.

Love y'all,

E.

----------------------------------------
Print This Page