It’s hard seeing anything get older. My sweet little golden doodle, so full of excitement to be a part of the family fun only a few years ago, could barely raise his little head when I came close this morning. And he is not THAT old, but he is older. His energy dial is turned down, way down. Sometimes he still gets frenzied like a puppy, but less often. He is limited by his little, tired body. But maybe this is a strength, I realized this morning. I had a light bulb moment. Let me explain.

“Moses . . . did exactly what God commanded. Moses was eighty . . . when [he] spoke to Pharaoh.” The Message

Moses was eighty years old! That’s kind of old, to be stepping out in faith, starting the new thing that God is calling someone to. And God used Moses so powerfully that the world still reverberates with the impacts of His obedience. We all at least recognize his name, over 3,000 years later.

God used an old, decrepit guy to lead an entire people group out of slavery and into freedom. The full story can be read HERE.

The point? Maybe the age of Moses wasn’t a liability to him, but a strength, through God’s eyes. I mean, God is God, right? He could have told Moses to start his God journey when he was young, strong, and energetic. But instead, he chose the old guy sitting on the couch. The guy who can barely stand without a few groans.

Being that old, Moses would have known that he desperately needed God to accomplish the tasks that God was asking him to do. And there lies his strength. So maybe the handicaps that we think we have – age (too old or too young), physical hardships, emotional wounds – are exactly the strengths that God will use to shine His power through. Knowing that we need to lean on God is our super strength power.

And so my golden doodle was used by God. He taught me a lesson about strength in weakness, even as he lay there on the couch. His infirmities smacked me awake. Will I step out, in faith, as Moses did, holding desperately to the hand of Jesus? Will I turn my worldview upside down? It’s not the bodybuilders who are strong in God’s eyes, but those with metaphorical flabby muscles, knowing they need to lean on God.

“My grace is enough; it’s all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness. Once I heard that . . . I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.” The Message

Consider listening to the song, Where the Light Shines Through by Switchfoot, and notice the lyrics “. . . your scars shine like dark stars. Your wounds are where the light shines through.” Consider asking God, “What scars do I have that are not a hindrance, but a strength in Your eyes, as I join my life to Yours? “