My wife and I have experienced power outages before, but seldom and they were brief.  A few hours at most. 

So being without electrical power for 27 hours earlier this week was a new experience for us.  The fierce storms that knocked our power out also knocked out the power of almost half of our county, as well as approximately 330,000 customers across the state.

If you happen to have had the misfortune of losing your electrical power for an extended time … whether this week, or at some other point in your life … then you know firsthand the inconveniences that come along with that.  We take for granted that we are plugged in and powered up – until suddenly we aren’t.

As far as danger, my wife and I weren’t really in any.  It’s August in Michigan, so temps were warm.  And we have all the outdoor gear we need to endure even a significantly extended outage, if forced to do so.  But that doesn’t mean it was pleasant or even easy.

If you have never been without power, you’ve probably never considered how many of your daily activities rely upon electricity.  You don’t realize how often you automatically flip on light switches when entering a room, or how accustomed you are to having instant light at the flip of your fingertips.  You don’t recognize the luxury of clicking on your television set, of working and playing on your computer, or of doing so with the comfort that air conditioning or even just fans can provide!  Or worse, if in the winter, the warmth the furnace pumps out!

If you have never been without power at night, you’ve never realized how many little lights there are scattered around your house.  The modem.  The digital clocks on the stove and microwave.  The power indicators on various appliances or miscellaneous conveniences.  And you’ve never experienced how very dark your house (and your neighborhood) becomes without power.  Everything looks different by battery powered, hand-held light.

Thankfully, we have our phones to provide information, communication and distraction.  But wait!  Eventually they have to be recharged  – a difficult task if charge (power) is not available!

And I haven’t even mentioned the key role power plays in regard to food storage.

As the length of the outage continued, it seemed clear it would stretch past the amount of time it was safe to eat food stored in the refrigerator.  (The time frame is 4 hours, if you’re curious.)  As we approached the safety limit, there was a mad scramble to move what we could to the church refrigerator, which fortunately was still running.  (Of course, it just so happened that we had a bounty of wonderful leftovers.  We had to discard them all.)  Later, I made yet another trip to transfer the food from our smaller freezer in our fridge to church.

A day later, I was making preparations to transition the food from our large freezer in the garage to the church as well.  (Food in a full and unopened freezer can last about two days; in a half-full freezer just one.)  Thankfully, the power was restored before needing to take that step.

How significant (and typically overlooked) is the blessing of electricity!  What a powerful impact losing power makes in our lives!

Which caused me to reflect upon how wonderful it is that God’s power in our lives is never interrupted.

And not only is God’s power never interrupted, it’s never-ending!  Boundless!  The Lord describes himself to Abraham in this way: “I am God Almighty” (Genesis 17:1).  King Jehoshaphat praised God by stating that “power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you,” and Daniel rejoiced that “[all] wisdom and [all] power are his” (Daniel 2:19). 

The Apostle Paul was inspired to describe that power as “eternal” (Romans 1:20).  In other words, there are no power outages in our God.

But God’s almighty and unending power is not just some abstract or esoteric attribute demonstrated only in wide-ranging ways (such as creation) and unapplicable to you and me.  It’s a power shown to each of us personally and continually through his loving provision and protection. (Matthew 6:25-34).

It’s also and more importantly a power that impacts us spiritually.  Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, “as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, and through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead” (Romans 1:3-4).  Or to say it another way, Jesus’ authenticity and substitutionary victory over the penalty of our sin were proven when he, in power, rose from the dead.

Furthermore, our powerful God gave us his powerful gospel which has changed our hearts, our lives, and our destiny “because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16).

The electric company can’t and won’t keep us constantly in power.  Thankfully, we have a Power Source in whom power outages are not possible.

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power” (Ephesians 6:10).