1,
God ‘appears’ not to have power, or to eschew any use of power, to many Christians who foolishly believe in the Cross as promoting ‘passivity’, weak capitulation, even masochistic enjoyment of pain.
Whilst [ancient and current] ‘crusading’ under the sign of the Cross is obscene, the Cross is a power, the final power of God, at work in the world. The only power God will use is redemptive in its wisdom and effect.
This power is not given to the passive, nor to the aggressive. It is not ‘in the power of’, nor is it ‘power over.’
2,
To the broken, and to the risk-taking, who embrace human vulnerability, human fragility, human poverty, God reveals the divine strength that works through human weakness; to our heartbreak, and to our venturing despite it, God grants his power.
To gain the true power of God, be faithful to the true heart of humanity.
It is not a formula, not a recipe, not even a rule or instruction. It is a way of living and doing.
Live it, and do it, and you will change your heart about the way things stand. You will stand, and from that vantage point, everything changes.