The Power of God
By: Robert C.

Thesis: To inform others of God’s power through the powers of prayer, encouragement, thanksgiving and love and to encourage them to pray, encourage, be thankful, and to love.

Introduction:
I. Good morning. It’s great to be here and to tell you of God’s power. This morning we will be talking about the power of God.
II. In the Webster’s dictionary, power means strength, energy, and ability. We know that the government has power to protect us and make laws for us.
III. God’s power is amazing. God has unlimited power. He can do anything. He has many powers the Bible describes. A few of these power are, but not limited to: prayer, encouragement, thanksgiving, and love. The greatest of these is love. In 1 Corinthians 13:13, it says:
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
IV. God’s power is amazing. In this lesson we will explore the powers of prayer, encouragement, thanksgiving, and love.

Body:
One of His powers is the…
I. Power of Prayer
A. Last year, there was a girl who was sick. Her name is Ariel Looper. She had gotten so sick that the doctors thought that she may not make a full recovery if she would make one at all. But, because of prayer, in a few weeks, doctors changed their prediction and said that she is expected to make a full recovery within a single year. This happened all because of prayer. God answered the prayers of the Church and the prayers of the Looper family.
B. Another example of the power of prayer is when Elijah prayed that it would not rain and it did not rain for three and a half years. Then he prayed again, and it rain and the earth produced crops.
C. What an amazing power of prayer. We can pray in Christ’s name and God will answer our prayer.

Another power is the…
II. Power of Encouragement
A. The way that God has encouraged me is through people. My teacher in 8th grade literature and language class has been used by God to encourage me. At the end of last school year, this is what she wrote in my yearbook:
Robert,
It has truly been a pleasure to get to know you this year. I have really enjoyed having you in my class.
I see wonderful leadership abilities in you. I know God has great plans for your life. Always follow Him.
Please keep in touch. I can’t wait to see what extraordinary things you will do with your life!
Mrs. Heginbothem
B. God has also encouraged me through Charlie Kymes who is the pastor at my church, CrossTown. In the winter of 2002, I told my grandma that I want a “preacher’s Bible” for Christmas. She told Charlie and Charlie asked me to say it in front of church. On Christmas I got a Christmas present from Charlie. It was a “preacher’s Bible” or better known as a thin paperback Bible. It has my name inscribed in gold on the front of the cover. In it there is a message and it says:
Robert, May this book lead you into the joy of heaven. I will meet you there! This is a great encouragement to me and I have to thank him.

A third power is the…
III. The Power of Thanksgiving
A. This power is one many people don’t see unless they see poverty first. This past summer, I went on a mission trip to Matamoros, Mexico and what I saw was, I believe, a great work of God.
B. Some of us don’t realize how much we have to be thankful for and yet these people who live in houses that aren’t suitable for living, are more thankful than most of us will ever be! They are the most wonderful people and yet they live in poverty! They have so little! And they are so thankful!
C. They are so thankful that they cry, cry, when we went to their houses and gave them food. We have so much and yet we are so unthankful! This is the true power of thanksgiving! Therefore, let us be thankful!

We have learned about the power of prayer, the power of encouragement and the power of thanksgiving. Now we will learn about the greatest power of all. In 1 Corinthians 13:13, the scriptures say:
And now the three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
The way I have seen the power of God is through…
IV. Power of Love
A. Through the cross, through Christ. God’s love is so amazing. I believe the best example of God’s love is found at the end of the Gospels. I also believe that it shows that same example of God’s love in a few songs. One of them is called Ten Thousand Angels:
They bound the hands of Jesus in the garden where He prayed They led Him thru the streets in shame. They spat upon the Savior so pure and free from sin; They said “Crucify Him; He’s to blame.”
Upon His precious head they placed a crown of thorns; They laughed and said, “Behold the King,” They struck Him and they cursed Him and mocked His holy name. All alone He suffered everything.
When they nailed Him to the cross, His mother stood near-by; He said, “Woman be-hold thy son!” He cried, “I thirst for water,” but they gave Him none to drink. Then the sinful work of man was done.
To the howling mob He yielded; He did not for mercy cry, The cross of shame He took alone. And when He cried, “It’s finished,” He gave Himself to die; Salvation’s wondrous plan was done.
He could have called ten thousand angels to destroy the world and set Him free. He could have called ten thousand angels, But He died alone, alone, for you and me.
Ten Thousand Angels
Words: Ray Overholt (w. 1959)
Music: Ray Overholt (w. 1959)
© Copyright 1959 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
B. God’s love is so amazing that He would send His son to die on the cross. Jesus died alone and He took on the sins of this world. He is our bridge between God and sin. His love is so wonderful and merciful.

Conclusion:
I. God’s power is so amazing. We have explored these four powers of God: the power of prayer, power of encouragement, the power of thanksgiving, and the power of love.
III. The greatest of all of God’s powers is the power of love for Scriptures say in 1 Corinthians 13:13-
And now the three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
III. Our God has so many great and awesome powers! But brethren, I also believe that our God is the unstoppable God!
IV. Therefore, let us pray to God daily, let us encourage others, let us be thankful and thank God, and, most importantly, let us love!
VI. Thank you for your attention and may God bless you as you choose God’s unstoppable side and join Him in the good fight!