When Is A Person Strong?

The Bible tells us about the giant, Goliath. And yet little David felled him with his sling shot. We read about "giants in the earth" in those early days. But were they so very strong?

We read that Claudius Caesar had a 9 foot, strapping fellow, named Baggarus, and yet the details are pretty hazy. Most giants in history have not been especially strong.

One exception, perhaps, was a man named Angus McAskill, born in Scotland in 1825. At the age of 19, he was 7 feet, 9 inches. And he was powerful. When his father's horses gave out, Angus slipped into the harness and matched his strength with the other horse. He was a church‑going, peace‑loving giant, and he looked for trouble with no‑one. When a heavy‑weight champion fighter from the docks accused him of being a coward and challenged him to a fight, he accepted. With great excitement the crowds gathered. The two men went to the center of the ring to shake hands before the fight. Suddenly the professional fighter screamed and fell to his knees. The fight was over. Angus had crushed the man's hand with one mighty grip.

P.T. Barnum hired him for awhile, billed with Tom Thumb. At the conclusion of each program, Tom Thumb danced a jig on the giant's palm.

He was challenged to lift a ship's anchor weighing 2,200 lbs. He did so, but as he lowered the unusual shaped weight, one of the points struck his shoulder, and tore the muscles so badly that he soon drifted out of the news.

Such feats of strength thrill us...especially when they come from a good person. Here in America, we seem to worship bigness. We build bigger bombs, and bigger planes, and bigger skyscrapers. But is bigger better? Is bigger, stronger?

Strength is not measured in biceps, or size, or loudness of voice. Strength is a quiet thing, measured in inner integrity, and the power of love. Jesus was the strongest man in the world. He never pulled down pillars in the temple, or lifted giant anchors over his head. But he defeated the devil in the wilderness, he was too strong to stoop to unkindness, and even though his anger burned with scorching heat against the scribes and Pharisees, he forgave them all from the cross. No tomb could hold him, and three days after his death at the hands of evil men, he burst open the bonds of the grave. Twelve disciples couldn't keep him to themselves, and now he lives in the hearts of millions. No darkness has been so great that the light he has given could ever be put out.

The exercise videos are helpful...my walking and running and exercising certainly helps to build up my body, but when it comes to looking for giants, I'll turn to Jesus. The Prophet once said, "They that wait upon the Lord, shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." (Isaiah 40:31)