By faith, not by our own strength.

Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? (Galatians 3:3)

Farmer Johnson...proudly strolled out of the hardware store with a brand-new chainsaw...guaranted to cut five big oak trees an hour. Twenty-four hours later, however,...Johnson was back at the store complaining that the saw would never cut five trees an hour. "Why, it only cut five trees all day long!" he said. Somewhat puzzled, the store owner stepped outside with the saw [and] gave the cord a rip.... The deafening roar...startled Johnson so badly that he stumbled trying to get away. "What's that noise?" he gasped.

Johnson's mistake in cutting down trees without starting up the chainsaw is similar to our foolishness when we try to follow Christ in our own strength.