“I can’t do this!” The boy cried out in desperation.
“What is wrong, son?” The concerned grandfather asked him.
“I can’t do this, I can’t. I don’t know how to swim!”
The grandfather smiled and replied to his frustrated grandson:
“Well, can you explain to me what have you been doing in the pool for the last two hours?”
Negativity and pessimism are traits that we all share. There are some among us that are more optimistic and positive than the rest of us, but even they have their “down” moments. Our sinful nature and adverse circumstances bring all of us down every once in a while.
Even the great heroes of the faith became the prey of feelings of negativity, inadequacy and depression. Jonah and Elijah and Job prayed for death. Moses and David were overcome with depression sometimes. Jeremiah wanted to stop preaching. The apostles had many doubts and deserted Jesus at his arrest.
Every child and servant of God has been in a similar situation. We have come to the realization that our inability is real. We can’t do anything on our own; we must rely and depend totally on Christ. Anyone that believes otherwise is a fool.
Jesus said,
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)
King Solomon realized his inability when he prayed to God for wisdom. God granted his request and he went on to be the wisest man around for many years. We too, can pray for wisdom (James 1:5) and God will make us wiser. We can pray for many other things, including strength and power and we will be able to do “all things through Christ” (Philippians 4:13).
Yes, without Christ we can do nothing. I cannot survive or succeed if I don’t surrender myself completely to Him. However, I can do things that are humanly impossible (like forgiving my enemies) in Christ.
There is no more room then, for continuous negativity for those who believe in, and depend on Christ. We may fall down from time to time, but He will lift us up. We may struggle with depression, anxieties and indecisions when we are faced with seemingly insurmountable challenges, but Christ will give us the victory.
A. G.
