By Linda K. Bridges for Blog Series: What’s in A Name Anyway?

His Name is El Shaddai—Almighty God—The All-Sufficient One!

 

God is Able–He is All-Sufficient!

When I think about God, and his ability to do anything, all I have to do is consider this name, El Shaddai—The All-Sufficient One. The character that precedes that name— (and I mean Character with a capital ‘C’)—spells power and authority, and it is declared in scripture that all power belongs to him.  Mary Kassian in Knowing God by Name, commented that ‘His ability is unrestricted. He has the power to create and destroy; the power to surprise; the power to mend, restore, and make new.”

Scripture tells us to ‘remember’ and ‘ponder’ the wondrous works of God. What do his works tell us about him?

“Remember how great is God’s power; he is the greatest teacher of all. No one can tell God what to do or accuse him of doing evil. . .We cannot fully know his greatness or count the number of his years.”  (Job 36:22-23;26 GNT)

“The LORD is. . .great in power. . .His way is in the whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet. He rebukes the sea and makes it dry; he dries up all the rivers. . .The mountains quake before him; the hills melt; the earth heaves before him, the world and all who dwell in it.” (Nahum 1:-5 NIV)

Personal Power is an Illusion!

God has the capacity—and the ability–to do far more for you and me than we could ever do for ourselves. If you are a control freak, like me, then this is a hard concept to accept. I sometimes feel the need to exert power over every circumstance that comes into my life! God is continually, gently, asking me to ‘let go’ and to rely on him and his power, instead of my own.  One friend of mine said it this way, “I have come to a point in my life where I have greater peace regarding giving ‘my power’ over to God. Personal power is an illusion. God alone is in control and I am learning to trust in him only. In trusting him can I be free of anxiety.”

El Shaddai will do more for us than we could ask, think or even imagine.

The Apostle Paul reminds us that impossible circumstances call for exceptional faith. Faith in the living, Almighty God!  Abraham was an example of such faith. ‘Abraham believed and hoped, even when there was no reason for hoping . . .he was then almost one hundred years old; but his faith did not weaken when he thought of his body, which was already practically dead, or of the fact that Sarah could not have children. His faith did not leave him, and he did not doubt God’s promise; his faith filled him with power and he gave praise to God. He was absolutely sure that God would be able to do what he had promised.” (Romans 4:18-20 GNT)

God proved Himself ‘All-Sufficient to Abraham’

God introduced himself as God Almighty.  (See God’s introduction of Himself to Abraham in Gen. 17:1 .) He is the ONE who became known as the “One-Who-is-Enough.”

God proved himself all-sufficient (enough) to Abraham and Sarah. He will prove himself all-sufficient for you –and for me! God can take that which is dead and produce life!  When we trust him wholly, he will do far more than you are able to ask, think or even imagine!

Paul testified of this at the end of his life, bound by chains and awaiting his execution:

 “. . .I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.” (2 Timothy 1:12b)

Paul desired that “you might know. . .what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe. (Ephesians 1:18-19)

To know El Shaddai’s immeasurable strength and power toward us helps us to trust and rely on him more. A response to this kind of trust often pours fourth in praise and song, poetry and art. Looking though a hymnal will be evidence enough of how poets and songwriters down through the ages have put their talents to work praising God for his attributes, and his holy name. I hope that will by your response as you ponder these thoughts.

“I sing the mighty power of God

That made the mountains rise,

That spread the flowing sea abroad

And built the lofty skies.” (Isaac Watts 1715)

“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to the power that is at work within us, to him [El Shaddai] be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20 NIV)

Take three minutes now to listen to this beautiful choral piece presented by the Choir of Kings College, Cambridge England, written originally by Joachim Neander, 1680. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhQi4yWTUBY

I hope your heart will be lifted up to praise HIM, El Shaddai—God Almighty–The ONE Who is Enough.

Praise to the LORD, the ALMIGHTY,

The King of all Creation!

O My Soul, Praise Him,

For He is they health and salvation! ~ (by Joachim Neander, 1680)

Thank you for stopping by my blog today. May El Shaddai show himself mighty on your behalf today and in the days to come!

Linda K. Bridges

 

Linda is a career missionary and Bible teacher for more than 35 years, having lived on foreign soil in both Austria and Thailand. Through her ministries she has traveled and taught the Bible in more than 20 countries, most recently in Nepal and Ukraine. She is also an author and children’s storybook illustrator and loves painting, writing poetry, and blogging.