Reading the story of Samson to my children inspired such a beautiful life lesson: We all know Samson was a man of crazy, crazy, and I mean crazy strength who, as a baby, was dedicated to the Lord to deliver God’s people from their enemies, which were the Philistines. He was so strong that he could tear wild animals apart with his bare hands, killing an entire army all on his own. It was also said he protected and defended Israel from any harm for twenty years and never lost a battle.
Can you imagine how upset the Philistines were?! Samson was ruining their plans to continue to dominate the surrounding land. They, therefore, made it their mission to find out where Samson’s strength was sourced from. They soon found out by bribing a woman named Delilah (who Samson had fallen in love with). Samson was tempted by Delilah and told her the source of his strength- his hair. While Samson slept, Delilah cut off his hair and delivered the Philistines to him. The Philistines immediately gouged out his eyes and sent him to prison. While Samson was in prison, however, his hair began to grow again.
In the meantime, the Philistines threw a party as they offered sacrifices to their god and decided to publically parade and poke fun at Samson. During the celebration, Samson was placed between two pillars and said these words, “God, look on me, again. Give me strength once more.” He took hold of the two middle pillars which supported the temple, pushing them apart with all his might until the entire temple collapsed. It was said he killed more in that moment than he had done in his entire life previously. He killed more in his ladder than he did in his former. Let’s break that down even further: He did more after he messed up than he ever did before he messed up.
You may have found yourself in a situation similar to Samson. You have found yourself in a place wondering how in the world did I fall into this temptation…AGAIN? Every time this person comes around, every time this substance is presented to me, every time it’s within arm’s reach… I keep freakin’ falling. I can’t get enough of it. It keeps calling my name. It’s trapping me. It’s getting worse and now I’m stuck. Let’s just face it. You hit a rock because you didn’t heed the warnings. I’m also sure you’ve said what Samson probably did in that jail cell: Man, I wish I could go back to before I dealt with this temptation. I was in my element. I had so many victories. I had so much zeal! I wish I could go back to the place where I had success and happiness.
But how cool is this: the same gift God blessed Samson with to tear apart wild animals was the same gift he used to kill thousands (AFTER he had fallen). The same gift you had back then is the same gift you have now. What was inside of you is still inside of you. God doesn’t renege on what He purposed you for. It is still there!
When your faith is restored as Samson’s, don’t use your past successes as a measuring stick. Wanting God to do what He did in the past places Him in a box He might want to get out of. Be assured your gifts are still present and be prepared for God to do something better! I don’t want the success I used to have. Although happy for those moments, I’m looking for God to do bigger and better and different (yes, different is okay!)
You might have done some awesome things in your past that stopped because you allowed yourself to stray. Allow God NOT to take you back to where you were, but move you forward to even better! Let God do greater…let Him do more! For videos, challenges, and daily encouragement, click here.