What the World Needs Now… Amipotence

By Deanna M. Young

God’s amipotence has the power to break the cycle of trauma in one’s life and change the world.

Amipotence is a new word Thomas J. Oord coined to “stress the priority of love over power in God” in his book Death of Omnipotence and Birth of Amipotence. For many years, I have believed that God’s love inspires God’s action in this world. Providing a word that is an alternative to omnipotence was a welcome solution to my struggle with calling God omnipotent. Too many people use and abuse the idea of God’s omnipotence and their certainty that God’s power takes priority over God’s love.

Believing Jesus to be God incarnate, Jesus’ life of love makes a case for God’s amipotence. Jesus shows us how love lives and gives of self to others. Jesus shows us that love does not inflict violence, manipulate, dictate, or overtake our free will. Love comes first.

Following is a sermon I preached at my church as I continue to lay the foundation of God’s amipotence without actually using the word—yet! But as you read, you will see that love has the power to break the cycle of trauma and change lives.

What the world needs now is love, sweet love. It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of. Those are the words of a song published in 1965.

What the world needs now is love, sweet love.

It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of.

What the world needs now is love, sweet love.

No, not just for some, but for everyone.

Never have lyrics spoken more truth. People are killing in the name of God, and this has been happening since the beginning of time. People are ostracizing and oppressing others in the name of God, and this, too, has been happening since the beginning of time. People are shaming and excluding others in the name of God, and this has been happening since the beginning of time.

“Jesus broke the cycle of trauma with his presence.” Bishop Thomas Bickerton of the United Methodist Church (UMC) spoke these words at the General Conference of the UMC 2024 in the midst of a church that has been divided over the topic of homosexuality. The UMC has been divided ever since hurtful, discriminatory, and restrictive language was added to the social principles of the Book of Discipline in 1972. When the Bishop spoke of Jesus breaking the cycle of trauma, I believe he was referring to stories in the Bible where people found themselves ostracized, oppressed, shamed, and excluded for various reasons. But when Jesus enters their lives, things change for the better. Their trauma (often caused by the rules of the religions or the religious) was named, and through Jesus’ love, compassion, and healing presence, the trauma, though it will always be a part of who they are, no longer defines them.

The old saying, the more things change, the more they stay the same applies here. So many people are defined and categorized by their trauma, shame, or by what others define as “abnormal.”

As scripture is considered, one might notice how many of the people who experienced Jesus’ healing miracles are introduced to us. They are not introduced by their name but instead as “the lame man,” “the woman with a hemorrhage,” “the blind man,” “the demon-possessed man,” and “the woman caught in adultery.” Prior to encountering Jesus, these people were known by their trauma—whatever it was. Once Jesus enters their lives, their trauma becomes a thing of the past.

Today, it might be the homeless person, the gay guy, the trans person, the drug addict, the alcoholic, the schizophrenic, the fat person, or the old person. I have to wonder why we don’t call them by the name Jesus would call them—”beloved.”

It is gut-wrenching when someone comes into the church to ask for help (which is probably very difficult for them to begin with), and people shy away or pass them off because it might be a challenging situation.

A man came into my church the other day. He was sweating as it was a very hot day, and he had been walking to get to the church. Shouldn’t the church be a safe place for someone to seek help? I heard him ask our receptionist if we could help him with a bible and hygiene products. I grabbed a bible and walked out to greet him. He introduced himself as Enoch, and I handed him the bible. He thanked me and placed it in his backpack. As I talked to him, the receptionist went to find hygiene products and sent another pastor, a male, to see if he could help with Enoch. Sometimes, a man can relate better to another man. We both talked to Enoch and asked questions about his life and needs. We heard stories of biblical nature—that he was Adam, he was one of the two witnesses and would be crucified in 20 years—but for now, there was still work to do. He spoke to people that weren’t there (or we couldn’t see). He quoted scripture as he clearly knew his bible.

Unfortunately, the receptionist couldn’t find any hygiene products. I had a tube of toothpaste and handed it to Enoch. The other pastor got some clothes (I suspect they were his clothes)—some T-shirts and shorts and gave them to Enoch. I had a basket of snacks and water and said he could take as much as he wanted. He didn’t take much. Before Enoch left, the other pastor and I touched Enoch’s shoulder and prayed for him. When finished, Enoch said, “Thank you. People don’t usually want to love me.” Enoch blessed all of us and went on his way.

“People don’t usually want to love me.” That statement pierced my soul. I do think that many people probably feel that others don’t want to love them. Of course, they think that way when people tell them that who they are makes them less than others. However, when we allow God’s powerful love (amipotence) to flow through us to them, love can be healing to their spirit. Remember, the cycle of trauma can be broken with Jesus’ presence. We need to be Jesus’ presence in this world. We need to help break the cycle of trauma.

Instead of killing in the name of God, how about loving in the name of God? Instead of ostracizing and oppressing in the name of God, how about loving in the name of God? Instead of shaming and excluding in the name of God, how about loving in the name of God?

Loving and extending grace, compassion, and kindness can never be wrong. It’s what Jesus did when he walked the earth. It’s what he taught us and asked us to do. We are to love extravagantly—and this love is not just for some but everyone.

Bio: Deanna M. Young is the Executive Pastor at Wildwood UMC in Magnolia, Texas. She earned her M.Div. from SMU, Perkins School of Theology, and her DThM from Northwind Seminary. Young is the author of Unblaming God: Interpreting the Old Testament Through the Lens of Jesus Christ, When Angels Sing: Are You Listening? and Connecting the Dots: Connecting Everyday Life Experiences to Spiritual Truths.

OORD’S DRABBLE* RESPONSE

I believe Deanna Young is exactly right: amipotence is God’s power to break the cycle of trauma. Her sermon beautifully highlights how gentle, uncontrolling love holds the deepest power to transform. This kind of love moves us to care for “the least of these” through acts of compassion and service. If God is amipotent and Jesus embodies this love, then we are called to imitate it. Rather than justifying exclusion, oppression, or violence in God’s name, we respond with mercy and grace. In doing so, we reflect the God Jesus reveals. Deanna’s insights into scripture and life continue to inspire me.

For more on Oord’s view on the revolution of love that we need, see this article.

* A drabble is an essay exactly 100 words in length.