" God loves you joyfully."

---

 

“I am feeling powerful.”

 

The flimsy box of cherry tomatoes fell from my hands all over the kitchen floor and under the refrigerator and I am asking myself, “Who is going to pick up those tomatoes?”

 

Whaaattthh do do do yoooouu you mememean whhhho?

Yooou yooou you of cooourse! 

Answered my alter ego who happens to be a stutterer.

I snap back at him, “That is easy for you to say,” knowing well that it was not easy for him to talk back to me.

 

My alter ego is a little legalistic and never wastes an opportunity to challenge me, knowing very well that I cannot bend easily because of my stroke, subsequent neuropathy, and useless left hand. In a sign of protest and rebellion, I do not know against whom, I walked away from the kitchen to my desk and resumed my routine in front of the computer.

 

Hunger did not subside but increased so that two hours later I was back in the kitchen carefully tiptoeing around those tomatoes that seemed to say, “Hi, we miss you.” I seemed to hear the smaller cherry tomatoes giggling a little.

I stuck my tongue at them and went to the reliable Ramen Soup ignoring those “Dirty tomatoes.”

 

After stuffing myself with unhealthy food I blink and eat humble pie by going all the way to the washing machine room to get the broom and quietly sweep together the tomatoes in a corner between the stove and the dishwasher.

The next day I noticed the tomatoes were not giggling anymore and with the night's rest I felt strong and humble enough to bring the dustpan and put them in the garbage can.

 

As the incorrigible preacher that I am, I refuse to waste the experience and I came up with an illustration to make a point on Power and weakness.

As you might have noticed, I am as weak as I can be before I kick the bucket or I am miraculously healed.

 

In the midst of my miserable situation our Lord spoke to me by his word that “when I am weak, that is when I am strong.” My heart was comforted as he alone knows how to encourage his own.

 

The Lord brought back to memory verses I learned long ago when I first repented from my way of life and came to Jesus.

“There is joy in heaven for every sinner that repents and comes to Jesus.”

Wow...! I had the power to alter the mood of heaven at my second birth.”

 

Later when discouragement hit me again, the Lord used Zephaniah 3:17 to lift me up all the way to cloud nine. “The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” Wow and double wow!!! …rejoice over ME with singing?

 

This is incredible evidence that I have the power to make God smile, Love, sing and be happy on account of me.”

 

That is why I am feeling Powerful even though I did not have the power to pick up the cherry tomatoes.

 

Let me confess that I would have found it impossible to believe such great truth if it was not that God himself by the Spirit has persuaded me to believe what I just shared with you.

 

By Faith and Prayer according to the Word and Will of God, we can already experience the meaning of, “Faith becoming sight.”

 

My beloved, do not underestimate the wealth you have, “Jesus in you is the hope of glory.” If Jesus is in you, then all power and authority is within you and within reach if you take Jesus at his word in a childlike manner.

 

This was the weakest powerful vessel on duty.

 

Gerry Gutierrez.

(The Oxymoron of Jesus)

 

PS. Walker County Water Just cut off my water services.