Find God’s power in the deepest places
Part 1 of an
interview with Micah Maddox,
Author of Anchored In: Experience a
Power-Full Life in a Problem-Filled World
There are a lot of people in the world
who seek power in the human form, but Anchored
In is about spiritual power and learning to live in tune to God’s voice,
direction and desire for our lives. Maddox hopes readers will realize God’s
power is available and accessible to each of them. She does not attempt to
resolve the adverse circumstances of life; rather, Maddox offers a different
approach to those circumstances, giving readers a new strength to manage them,
rise above them and ultimately conquer them with a power that exceeds
humanity’s grip.
Q:
What does it mean to live Anchored In?
Every day, we all anchor our lives in
something. Sometimes we anchor our lives in our work, mothering, goals, desires
and sometimes even our problems. I’ve learned I often allow my problems to take
the center stage of my thinking and my life. Anytime we allow anything other
than God to take the focus of our hearts and minds, we are not living in the
power God has provided for us to live in. God is teaching me that living
anchored in His presence is the only way to experience His power. Living
anchored in means we willingly set aside every circumstance and problem of our
lives and fully focus our hearts, minds and souls on the Savior, the Anchor.
Q: What does it mean to live a
power-full life in a problem-filled world?
There
are a lot of people in the world who seek power in the human form. This book is
about spiritual power. It’s about learning to live in tune to God’s voice,
direction and desire for our lives. I believe God has a purpose for every
single one of His children, and we can know that purpose and live confidently
in the power He freely offers us.
The
problem is many people struggle to experience God’s power when life is crazy or
tragedy strikes, so they begin to believe God’s power is reserved for someone bigger
and better than them or someone who has an easier life. However, I know God’s
power is available and accessible to each of us. When we experience it for
ourselves, we learn what it means to live a power-full life. It’s a life where
we choose to be emptied of our selfish ambitions and desires, and we learn to
be filled with God’s promises, protection, providence, peace and ultimately His
power.
I
want to encourage women that God’s power is not reserved for teachers, leaders
or pastors. God’s power is reserved for every person who is willing to receive
it. Be encouraged that God is waiting for you to experience His power! It’s
available and accessible to every single person. My prayer is this book will
help many people learn how to experience God’s power like they never have
before.
Q: You write, “The power of God is not about avoiding the deep waters of
life. It’s about diving into them.” How do we do that without feeling like
we’re drowning in our circumstances?
When I say dive into the deep waters
of life, I don’t mean we saturate ourselves in a sea of our problems. I mean we
face the facts. It’s not so much about becoming absorbed with the problems;
it’s more about having the courage to look eye-to-eye with the reality of life
rather than turning a blind eye and pretending it away.
Q:
Tell us about the “Praying God’s Power” prayers you include at the end of each
chapter. What part does prayer play in experiencing God’s power?
Prayer is huge, and so often we don’t
pray because sometimes it’s just too hard to verbalize what we are feeling or
what we are really thinking—it’s too painful to say out loud. However, I’m
learning to focus my prayer on Jesus rather than on myself. When I pray with
Him as the center, the focus, I find Him so very near. Praying God’s power is
praying with faith, trust, and assurance God is going to carry me to the other
side of the storm.
Q:
What wise words did your son tell you one night as you were tucking him in to sleep
that resonated with you as you wrote the chapter on listening to God’s voice?
When I pulled his covers up and leaned
in to give him a goodnight kiss, he acted like he was having a dialogue with
God. As he and God had a conversation back and forth, I asked him what God was
saying to him. His answer was, “God speaks quiet to us. He loves us.” That
moment for me was an a-ha moment, one I hope I never forget. The still, small
voice of God is powerful, and the simple truth that He loves us is something we
can always cling to.
Q:
How do we allow God to define our dreams?
This
is a loaded question. There is so much I could say, but I’ll try to sum it up.
We all have dreams. Some we go for and act on, and some we just imagine—some we
never speak of because we are afraid of failure. However, I’m learning God has
dreams for us we never can even imagine. Allowing God to define our dreams
means we completely surrender every single thing in our lives to His control.
What I mean is we strip away everything in our lives and pare it down to just
us. We get rid of the fluff and the American dream of cars, kids and a nice
home, and then we expose ourselves without all of our stuff. When we begin to
strip away the sparkle and shine of life and get down to the reality of who we
are and whose we are, we begin to find a new dream. We get it so mixed up and
can never really experience God’s power when we are constantly seeking a picture-perfect
family, home, job or success. God’s dreams don’t require success. They require
surrender. We surrender everything.
Learn more at www.micahmaddox.com. She is also
active on Facebook (@micahmaddoxencouragement), Twitter (@MrsMicahMaddox) and Instagram (@mrsmicah).
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