I Have Power. Acts 1:8

  "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." NKJV
  "But you will receive power when the Holy Sprit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere--in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. JCB

  It sends shivers up my spine to think that little ole me, sitting in the kitchen surrounded by items rescued from the flood, is fulfilling this prophecy, this command of Jesus. Not on my own by any means. Well, and I smile, maybe sometimes I try and swing it alone but the Holy Spirit is quick to redirect me as the words come spilling out.
  Power. I have to take apart my thoughts about what it means. Power has been used for evil. It has been used to enable terrible acts of genocide. Power has been used to crush human rights. It has been used and is still used to trap people into slavery. Power is about instilling fear.
  The quest for power is destroying forests and wildlife because wealth is power.
  Human kind has been seduced by the need for power into making weapons sufficient enough to destroy God's world many times over.
  These are grim thoughts.

  Within North American culture, the stories of good vanquishing evil pervade literature, TV, and the movies because we all love to see the bad guy take a fall. Which isn't a Christian idea at all. Christians should be more pleased if the bad guy was redeemed. Maybe that's why the animated movie Despicable Me has achieved such success. The main character, bent on world domination, ends up a doting and caring father.
  The story of Jesus is even better than that!

  When Jesus says His followers will receive power it makes me realize that until the events at Pentecost following Jesus' death, the disciples were trying to obey His commands without being infused with the heart, the Spirit, the love of God.
  The power Christ is talking about is found through the laying down of arms and hurts and the need for vengeance. It is surrendering our will, the independent streak...our sinful nature into the hands of God. It is acknowledging our brokenness. It is the admission that we are unable to go it alone.
  Which is why God sent His Spirit to us as Guide and Helper. The eternal presence of God is with us each and every moment of every day. In every breath, He is there. In every heartbeat, He is there. In every quest for knowledge and understanding, He is there. In every daydream, hope or need, He is there.
  Through God's Spirit I have power. It is the limitless, unfathomable power of love.