When it is a question of God's almighty Spirit, never say, 'I

The words “When it is a question of God’s almighty Spirit, never say, ‘I can’t’” were written by Oswald Chambers, the Scottish preacher and author of My Utmost for His Highest, whose life and writings have stirred generations of believers toward deeper faith and surrender. In this quote, Chambers gives voice to a truth as ancient as creation itself: that human weakness is no barrier to divine power. When God’s Spirit is at work, limitation becomes possibility, and impossibility becomes a stage for the Almighty’s glory. These words, though simple, are a command against despair — a call to rise above doubt and remember that divine strength begins where human strength ends.

Chambers lived during a time of great struggle and spiritual awakening. As a chaplain during World War I, he ministered to soldiers broken by fear and grief. He saw firsthand how men, standing on the edge of death, often whispered “I can’t” — can’t endure, can’t forgive, can’t believe. And yet, in those same trenches, he witnessed miracles of courage and faith when hearts turned from self-reliance to divine reliance. Thus his teaching was born from experience, not theory. He understood that when the Holy Spirit enters the human soul, it transforms frailty into fortitude. The Spirit does not erase weakness — it redeems it.

This quote rests upon a timeless biblical principle: that God’s power is made perfect in weakness. From Moses stammering before Pharaoh, to David facing Goliath, to Peter walking upon the sea, history overflows with those who found victory only when they surrendered their “I can’t” to the Spirit’s “I will.” Chambers’ words remind us that to say “I can’t” is often not humility but unbelief — for it places more faith in our limitations than in God’s ability. The Spirit’s work is not hindered by the smallness of our vessel; it is magnified through it. For the flame shines brightest in the darkest room, and divine strength rises most clearly through the cracks of human frailty.

Consider the story of Corrie ten Boom, a woman who hid Jews from the Nazis during World War II and later suffered in a concentration camp. After the war, she met one of her former captors — the very man responsible for the death of her sister. When he asked for forgiveness, Corrie froze. Her heart whispered, “I can’t.” Then she remembered Christ’s command to forgive, and in prayer she yielded to the Holy Spirit. In that moment, she described feeling an electric current of love flow through her arm as she took his hand and forgave him. Her “I can’t” became God’s “I can.” Such is the power Chambers spoke of — a strength not born of emotion or will, but of divine indwelling.

In these words, Chambers calls us to trust the Spirit more than ourselves. Too often we measure life by what we can control, forgetting that faith is not about control but surrender. When God calls us to serve, to forgive, to endure suffering, or to rise above fear, our first impulse may be to retreat into the safety of limitation. But every “I can’t” becomes a locked door to the miraculous. The Spirit, however, waits patiently — ready to act, if only we will open that door with faith. As Chambers often wrote, “Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One who is leading.”

This truth also carries a quiet warning: do not confuse divine dependence with human passivity. To say, “I can’t” when the Spirit has spoken is not humility — it is resistance. God does not ask if we are capable; He asks if we are willing. The Spirit supplies what the flesh lacks. The moment we believe this, life ceases to be a battle of our strength and becomes an unfolding of His power. Every soul that has walked with God — from Abraham leaving his homeland to Mary accepting her impossible calling — has first stood at the edge of impossibility and chosen to say, “Not my strength, but Yours.”

The lesson is clear and eternal: never measure your capacity by your weakness when the task is divine. Measure it by God’s almighty Spirit, whose presence makes all things possible. The one who trusts the Spirit will do more than he ever dreamed, for he is carried by power not his own.

Practical actions: When faced with fear, pause and breathe the words, “God’s Spirit is within me — I can.” When you feel too weak to forgive, too tired to hope, too small to act, remind yourself that the command to love, endure, or rise comes not from your own will but from divine strength. Begin every endeavor in prayer, and end every effort in gratitude. Surrender your “I can’t” to God each day — and watch as His Spirit transforms it into “With Me, you can.”