Walking in Fortified Strength
“For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world—even our faith.” — 1 John 5:4
There is a kind of strength that life’s circumstances were never designed to destroy. This strength is not just about endurance; it is built to overcome the world. It is built to rise above every form of resistance. It is strength that allows us to walk by faith and not by sight, trusting that God is forming something deeper in us.
Yet, what often happens is that the daily challenges we face—financial pressures, health concerns, rejection, loneliness, delays—they begin to stir agitations inside us. If we are not watchful, those agitations begin to shape our character. We start reacting to life not from our ordained strength, but from our pain, our fear, our insecurities. We start assuming, preempting, defending, attacking—until agitation becomes our baseline for living. That’s why we must always cling to spiritual words of encouragement and strength that remind us who we truly are.
But that’s not how we were made to function. There is a higher state, a victorious position, a being that every man is supposed to operate from—a position in God that becomes our launching pad, our compass, and the forming center of our heart’s posture. As 2 Corinthians 5:7 reminds us, “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” This is the mindset that drives spiritual growth and nurtures inner transformation. 2 Corinthians 5:7 is more than a verse; it is a call to live beyond the surface and build from within.
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” — Joshua 1:9
What life throws at us is often not the real threat. The real question is: Do we have the strength to stand? Because when the strength is there, you don’t break—you rise. You don’t scatter—you become stable. You don’t fall into desperation—you gain clarity. This is where the true journey of spiritual growth begins—when we walk by faith and not by sight, even when everything around us seems uncertain.
Let me share something personal:
I remember a personal experience that has stayed with me for years. Many years ago, there was a fire incident in Ibadan, and I was assigned—alongside an elderly man—to investigate and prepare a report about the damage.
Before we even got to the site, I had already begun thinking about how to go the extra mile. I imagined myself carrying the necessary tools, checking the depth of the fire impact on the walls, estimating what strength remained in the structure, calculating what needed to be repaired. I was ready to handle the unusual responsibilities—ready to put in the work, go beyond the normal to deliver something accurate and helpful.
It was in that moment—before I even stepped out to do the physical work—that the elderly man noticed something in me. He looked at me and said: “I like your drive. I like you. You’re smart. You should go to Canada.”
I laughed. Canada? I thought. He didn’t even know my background. He didn’t know my village. What did I know about Canada?
But he was serious. He followed up with calls. He even sent me application forms. But guess what? I delayed. I didn’t fill those forms immediately. My travel to Canada could have happened around 2007 or 2008, but I thank God for that delay.
Because the delay allowed me to build something deeper. During that time, I found myself drawn again and again to helping people. Not for money. Not for recognition. But because it was the only thing that felt right. I discovered that every time I helped others, every time I gave of myself, something in me was being built—a kind of inner weight, a kind of strength that could not be faked. These were moments of spiritual growth.
“Do not grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” — Galatians 6:9
Eventually, I filled that form and traveled—and now I live in Canada. But I didn’t come here in pursuit of money. The path that brought me here was not a hustle; it was a thrust, an impartation. The man who saw that strength in me and opened the door was led by something beyond logic. And even I didn’t fully know what was happening at the time.
Now, I understand. God was forming a strength in me.
The strength I walk in today is not about bold words or perfect plans. It is fortified strength. It is strength tested by challenges. And the more the challenges came, the more focused I became—not on escaping the challenge, but on ensuring that the strength inside me was growing. Every challenge became a stepping stone.
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” — James 1:2-4
That’s the focus that challenges built in me: That my strength must increase. Spiritual growth became my response to pressure. Challenges stopped looking like enemies and began to look like training grounds.
That every experience is an invitation—not to give up, not to bow to fear—but to return and look inward for that power of lift. Because once that power is activated, you realize there are others too who carry a similar thrust. And when your thrust meets theirs, something greater is formed. This is the essence of walking in fortified strength.
Strength multiplies. The weight of God’s intention begins to show. We sometimes call it collective anointing—the convergence of inner strengths that lift individuals beyond their own capacity. And it all begins when we walk by faith and not by sight. This daily decision, as echoed in 2 Corinthians 5:7, transforms the mundane into the miraculous.
But when you’re disconnected from that, you feel naked, isolated, small. You start to think, “Why don’t I have what others have?” But even that feeling is a call: Return to the Source. Draw strength from spiritual words of encouragement and strength that revive your core. Speak them aloud. Let them renew your vision.
Find the thrust. Draw again from the power of God within. Let the internal strength become your base—not assumptions, not agitation, not desperation. Let it be the platform from which your spiritual growth flourishes.
“Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever.” — Psalm 125:1
Because ultimately, the challenges of life most times test if what you carry is real. And if the strength is truly there—you will come through. Let spiritual words of encouragement and strength remind you that what is tested can also be trusted.
Walk in it. Grow in it. And this is how we overcome—through spiritual growth, through 2 Corinthians 5:7, through walking in fortified strength.