Proverbs 24: 10 Do you know your own strength?

¹⁰ If you falter in a time of trouble,
    how small is your strength! 

Recently I was in heavy traffic and stopped at an intersection, waiting for the traffic light to change.  The heat from the pavement made everything shimmer outside my car; all was asphalt, concrete, and paint. My eyes were drawn to a crack in the sidewalk, where a small plant had found just enough dirt to get its start. It apparently had avoided the city workers and their sprayers, and had risen several inches into the humid summer air. A tiny bloom decorated the very top of the plant, and it swayed in the breeze as I watched.
The light changed, and I drove away, but I kept thinking about the little bloom. Then I saw that this was the next verse in our study, and I knew why God had drawn my attention to that plant. 

Do you know your own strength? There are examples of plants and trees that actually cause pavement to crack and crumble, so strong is the force that they exert as they grow.
How strong are we? When a "time of trouble" comes, how do we react? Do we panic, or complain; perhaps we have a pity party, or whine to someone about our situation. Or, do we seek the Lord for the endurance and power that we need, to quietly, cheerfully face that trouble?  Solomon has been encouraging us to internalize the wisdom that will help us endure adversity.

Nehemiah 8:10 tells us "the joy of the Lord is your strength." We belong to a God who makes gladness a pathway to power! And Paul says to the Ephesians: "Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might." (Eph 6:10)   That's the ticket! That is where our real power comes from . . .
Isaiah 40:29 says it a little differently, but the idea is the same: "He gives strength to the weary
    and increases the power of the weak."
Today let's give thanks to our Father for the strength He makes available to us!