Many times, we seem to think we can do things without God. I mean, He will still be there if we might need Him, but really, we've got it all covered. Of course, as probably most people could attest to, when we stop relying on God and start relying on ourselves, that is when things go terribly wrong.
CS Lewis says that often times when we fail or struggle to live up to the people that we can be, our first reaction is to try harder and harder, believing that next time we will be better, or resist the temptation to fall. However, the greatest effort in the world isn't going to achieve anything. CS Lewis writes:
"All this trying leads up to the vital moment at which you turn to God and say, 'You must do this. I can't.'" (146)
Similarly, Lewis talks about when want to do things with unselfish and pure motives. No matter how much we try, we cannot achieve the results that we want all on our own, it is simply not going to work.
"But I cannot, by direct moral effort, give myself new motives. After the first few steps in the Christian life we realise that everything which really needs to be done in our souls can be done only by God." (193)
If we put all of our trust in ourselves, we will find out what everyone realizes... that we are merely human, prone to making mistakes, bad decisions, and falls. But if we place our trust in God, suddenly the impossible becomes possible, our weaknesses become strength.
If you are having trouble in some aspect of your life, make this your prayer: "Lord, I am not strong enough. You do it for me."
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