Devotion - Wednesday, October 13

The opening line from this morning’s prayer caught my attention: “O God, whose almighty power is made known chiefly in showing mercy and pity…” It identifies for us what God’s power is like; it instructs us as to how we ought to exercise power in our world.

So often, power is used to dominate others. The “powerful” are those who have the ability to crush others. God’s power is of a differing type. God is powerful enough that no shows of strength are necessary.

Every day we are bombarded with political campaign ads. I hate joining an all too popular chorus which decries negative campaigning. (They do it because it works – we fall for it.) Such ads seek to portray as powerful the one who has the ability to “expose the misdeeds” of another. It is a use of power to crush the opponent’s message, their self-presentation. A truly powerful politician is one who uses their energy to serve the common good; to enable positive change for the citizens.

There is a lot of talk about the Clemson football team. “I like Dabo, but why can’t he win games?” I like Dabo, too. And I think he is a good man. I have come to believe that he understands the power he has in the lives of the players. And, whether he wins games or not, it seems to me that he is using his power to improve the lives of players.

“O God, whose almighty power is made known chiefly in showing mercy and pity….” Perhaps only “almighty” power can be shown in this way. Regular old everyday power will forever slip toward abuse and manipulation. Maybe, but I hope not; I pray not. And I invite you to join me in labeling abusive actions as something other than power. God has shown us was power really is, and it is never used to put someone down or harm them.