February 21, 2025 Devo

February 21st, 2025

“Walking Through the Psalms”
“He rescued me from my powerful enemies, from those who hated me and were too strong for me.” – Psalm 18:17 (NLT)
“Surrender Is the Beginning of Victory”

Recovery teaches you that there are some forces that you are simply powerless against. They are urges that you can’t control. They are habits that you can’t break. They are impulses that you can’t stop. They are addictions that are like shackles that you can’t free yourself from. In recovery, you’re taught that you have to come to a place of surrender—an admission of powerlessness against these forces. And that you need a Higher Power, one stronger than you, to overcome them.
These two principles, our powerlessness and the need for a Higher Power, lay the foundation for victory. Because until you can confess your own insufficiency and admit your need for a power greater than your own, you’re stuck in the “try and fail” cycle. And Satan has you right where he wants you.
David, who was at one time the most powerful king on earth, had to make this admission. Our verse today is a part of a psalm of victory. But David confesses that this victory was not because of his military prowess or ability to rally troops or even his own skill at giant killing. His enemies were too strong for him. He was powerless against them. So he surrendered himself to a Higher Power. The ONLY Higher Power. The Lord God Almighty.
This idea pervades the New Testament as well. Jesus talks about it in John 15 as He reminds us that HE is the Vine and we are just branches. Apart from Him, we can do NOTHING. Paul builds on this as well as he confesses that it is when he is “weak” that he is strong. A victorious life is not the result of trying harder, being smarter, or employing the power of positive thinking. It’s the result of admitting your weakness. It comes from surrendering to the power of one greater than yourself. Jesus CAN do what you CAN’T do. He is the One True Higher Power.
Carrying burdens you can’t manage? Facing problems you can’t solve? Are you dealing with attitudes you can’t shake, habits you can’t break, or addictions you can’t overcome? Don’t give up. Give them over. Admit your powerlessness and confess your need for a Higher Power. Cry out to someone who is greater, stronger, and able to do what you can’t. Surrender is the beginning of victory. And Jesus, your Higher Power, waits to help you with open arms. That’s God’s Word for you today.