1st Sunday Devotional – Not Losing the Power that Matters

Ann H GabhartAnn's Posts, One Writer's Journal 25 Comments

Another storm slammed us this afternoon. The second Sunday afternoon in a row that we’ve had wild storms. Last week we didn’t lose power, but this week we have. Our whole road and area along with plenty of others across the county are without power. The crews are out there working, but other storms keep rolling through.

It’s not dark yet, but it won’t be long till the daylight will begin to fade. And my laptop battery will be fading right along with it. Batteries only last a little while. Maybe I should hunt up some candles!

There are so many things you can’t do without the electricity we have become so dependent on. The stove won’t cook food since mine is electric. The desktop computer won’t fire up. The phone charger won’t work. No laundry will get done. No tv programs will be watched. I think all our radios need plugs. I do have clocks that are battery powered. Our phones are fading along with my laptop. Might have to go take a ride in the car to charge one of them up.

We are so dependent on electricity. When I’m writing my stories set in times before houses had electricity or even could have electricity, I  think how very different life had to be when all has to be done without the electrical power we so take for granted. Then I think about the power that really matters. That power that has always been available to people, no matter when or where they live or lived.  That’s the power from the Lord that charges up Christians.

Just as we have to plug into the power from the electric company, we also have to plug into the power the Lord offers so freely. There’s no monthly fee. The Lord doesn’t send us disconnected notices when we forget to plug into that power with faith and prayer. The Lord’s power is always there ready for believers to reach for it, to plug into it and let it work through them. Through us.

I hope you make it safely through whatever storms come your way and that you will always have power from the electric company, but even more that you will feel the Lord’s power i your life each and every day.

“He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names. Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.” Psalm 147:4-5

Just as I wrote these last words, our electricity fired back up. I wish the same for you if your electricity has been interrupted by storms. But more than that I wish you the power that matters most for great is our Lord and abundant is His power.

What do you miss most when the electricity goes off? 

Comments 25

  1. I loved this devotional! It is so true. I’m am so thankful for God’s love everyday, love that I don’t deserve or can’t earn but he gives to all of us. I do miss electricity Ann; since I am now by myself, when the power goes out, I feel very alone, no sound other than my breathing or my animals. Thanks for reminding me I’m never alone, He is with me!
    So glad your electricity came back one. Thanks for being another blessing in life, I love your words and I love the way you love the Lord.

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      Always good to see your comments, Pamela. Maybe the next time your electricity goes out, you should sing to your dogs or cats. They might sing back and there would be plenty of noise. 🙂 But I can see why not having the normal noises you’re used to would make you feel so alone.

      I appreciate your kind words about my words. 🙂

  2. Wonderful article
    Thank you
    I depend on God every day. I thank Him when I wake up, when I eat, when I get out in my car. I ask for safety. I thank Him when I go to bed, for all my blessings.
    When I was small we didn’t have electricity in our house, in fact none of the neighbors did either. We lived on a farm in the country. We didn’t have electricity until we moved to town, when I was 10 years old.
    I sure do miss it if we lose power, but thankful that doesn’t happen where I live now.

  3. Wonderful article
    Thank you
    I depend on God every day. I thank Him when I wake up, when I eat, when I get outin my car. I ask for safety. I thank Him when I go to bed, for all my blessings.
    When I was small we didn’t have electricity in our house, in fact none of the neighbors did either. We lived on a farm in the country. We didn’t have electricity until we moved to town, when I was 10 years old.
    I sure do miss it if we lose power, but thankful that doesn’t happen where I live now.

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      Glad you enjoyed the post, Marlene. Sounds as if you know how to plug into the power that matters. Walking and riding with the Lord is a good thing.

      I don’t remember not having electricity, but my sister who is a few years older than I am can remember when the first lights were turned on in our farmhouse. I think that would be such a neat memory.

  4. We don’t lose it much since we moved to an oil company town, but when we lived in a house in the woods it was always down. I always miss the background noise of radio or tv the most.

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      I’m not one that needs background noise, Carol. I don’t have a play list for when I’m writing. Just the normal sounds or no sounds at all suit me best. But my husband definitely misses the tv when the power is off. Glad you don’t have to worry about outages the way you used to.

  5. Loved this devotional, We had a wind storm Thursday and didn’t have power for 24 hours. Sort of nice being quiet but lost everything in my freezer.I had a yard full of limbs from my neighbors tree, that I had to clean up, but had a lot of time to think about how grateful I was that it wasn’t a tornado, that God was watching over us.

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      So glad you enjoyed the devotional, Donna Jean. No power for 24 hours can be a bummer, especially when you lost your freezer items.

      Love your positive thinking while you cleaned up the downed limbs. I was extra grateful last Sunday when the storm blew out a big limb that could have taken down our electrical supply lines, but didn’t. We still have a broken limb hanging near the line. Hoping if it falls, it will slide past the wires and not break anything.

  6. Thank you for this wonderful devotion. When the power goes out, I miss the air conditioner or heater, depending on the season. But, I must admit that sometimes I enjoy the quiet that comes with no electricity, as long as everyone is safe. 🙂

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      Quiet. Yes, Melissa, that can be a blessing. We rented a houseboat once with my husband’s family. I was so happy when the generator on it stopped working. It made being out on the lake so much nicer without that noisy generator running.

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      My husband was ready to go driving around in his truck to charge his phone, Lisa. It’s crazy how much we depend on our cell phones these days. The no air conditioning would have been difficult for him too although we managed many years without it. We did keep the fans blowing which no electricity would have stopped that too. Back in the day, I think everybody just went outside in the shade and fanned themselves.

  7. This is a great devotional , and very appropriate in our neighborhood as we had high winds that toppled trees on Thursday and many in our area are still without power. In fact, our side of the street has power and our neighbors just across the street do not have power and it is Sunday eve. We only lost basic cable which is no big thing, but some have been totally without electricity. It happened to my family once for about 4 days but we happened to have a gas stove, gas refrigerator, and no school so as teens it was an “adventure”. I shared this with two friends and thought it would be good to share on FB but see that is not allowed, which is totally understandable! Thank you for this important reminder.

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      I didn’t know you couldn’t share the blog on Facebook. I wouldn’t have minded it you did, Jeanne. Glad you thought it interesting enough to share.

      Sorry about your storm damage. We had some limbs down, but it was worse where my son lives with several large trees down. Last I heard, he was still without power. Plus, due to the power outage, very little water. Just a trickle out of the faucets. Hoping things get better for him soon.

      We were out for nearly 2 weeks a few years ago during an ice storm. No fun at all. Guess I needed to be younger to think of it as an adventure. LOL.

  8. I love this devotion Anne. The Lord’s power is truly all we need. But I would sorely miss my hot water shower if my electricity was off for awhile. I thank God for it every day.
    We were fortunate here…only a lot of noisy thunder and a brief rain today. But Friday night into Saturday morning we had a doozy storm. Poor Ollie. And my electricity was off for several hours, but only during the “trying to sleep during the storm” hours. Thankfully no damage though.
    I hope you have a great Independence Day, and your pups aren’t too scared from fireworks. (Ollie has some calming meds from his vet, so he’s sleeping well tonight)

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      I probably should ask for those calming meds for Frankie, Lavon. I might get more sleep when it was storming if they worked. Frankie has had a rough few days what with the storms and then when the storms stop, the fireworks begin. He has learned to go to the basement but every so often he comes back upstairs to wake us up. Maybe he thinks we should pay attention and come to the basement too. I was wishing there was a bed down there the other night when we had thunderstorms all night long.

      Happy 4th of July to you too and may everyone’s fireworks be too wet to boom. LOL.

  9. We had a rain shower this afternoon, and, thankfully, it watered our plants and reduced our temperature outside. Without electricity, I would really miss the air conditioning since it’s so hot right now.

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      That air conditioning spoils us quickly. Suzanne, and we don’t like to do without it although there are times I’m too cool with it running. My husband isn’t though. We try to compromise where I don’t freeze and he doesn’t burn up. We have different heat levels.

      We’ve gotten 4 inches in the last few days. So I didn’t have to worry about watering my plants either.

  10. The first thing I Miss is the heating or the air, especially the air. I like cool weather and this summer we’ve been getting quite a bit of hot weather here in our part of Maryland. Storms have gone around us quite a bit this time. And I praise God for that. The second thing I would miss really is my music, my radio or my CDs and tapes. I listen to hymns
    and especially harp. The Lord’s Power company has kept me safe for all of these years no matter what comes my way. Don’t know how I could manage one day without him or even an hour or a second. Thank you for giving us reminders. Sometimes that he is always there. Have a great week. Oh and waiting for your next book. God bless!

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      That’s a neat way to word it, Dusti. The Lord’s Power Company. If only more people would sign on to that company, our world would be a better place.

      My husband would have definitely missed the air conditioner if our electricity hadn’t been restored. But he would miss his C-Pap machine the most. Me, I’d miss my hot tea. 🙂

      Harp music. That’s interesting. Sounds as though it might be inspiring and soothing at the same time.

  11. We have power but had some storms come through our area of central Pennsylvania today that brought two back-to-back tornados. So far not hearing that anyone was hurt, thank the Lord, but there was some damage to some homes, barns and businesses. We bought a generator years ago after we were without power for days and it is a blessing to have. It isn’t a huge one but my husband has it set up to run a few things including our furnace when needed in the winter and fridge and freezer. I don’t think we realize how much we rely on electricity until we lose it for a while. Glad yours is back on and love how you point out that Gods power is always available to us, and it really is the most important connection to have in our lives.

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      My husband bought a generator, Hope, and had things wired so that we could run some of the house appliances like the freezer. But for some reason, he’s never been able to start it whenever we have an outage. I think it has gremlins.

      I hope your property escaped the tornado winds. It’s good when no one is hurt but it can still be difficult to have your property destroyed.

  12. Great devotion about the Power, both the One that’s most important and the electrical one we depend on. I miss the heating and the cooling depending on the season. My stove is gas, but I would have to light it with a match. Other appliances I would be out of luck. I have been very fortunate where I live to only have the power go out a few times. I do remember to plug into the important Power source everyday. I couldn’t live without Him.

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      So good that you plug into the Power that can be the most help, Birdie.

      We are fairly fortunate here that if we have a power outage it is usually not for an extended period of time. We were out for a couple of weeks once after an ice storm. That was interesting. But at the time we had a wood stove we used for heat and so we could have hot water and cook a little on it. We were super glad for the power to come back on though.

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