Strength in weakness

“And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Hello, my friend…

How I can identify with Paul in this passage! How many times have I gone to God and BEGGED Him to remove a painful situation in my life, only to have Him tell me something very similar to what He said to Paul. Except with me, He said, “Suck it up. Be a man. Deal with it.” Obviously, those weren’t His exact words, but that was my takeaway. Frankly, I was a little less than happy with that answer, but He is God and I’m not. I learned to just deal with it at the time.

Only after having grown older now do I appreciate what Paul is sharing with us in this verse. I used to think that those things that caused me pain held me back, they hindered me. My attention was divided between wanting to do what He was asking of me and the results of the pain and suffering I was experiencing. I thought, “If only God would remove this thing from me, just think how much more I could do!”

I found myself, however, much like the Israelites in the Old Testament. I would cry, mumble, and complain about something rather than concentrate on the mission at hand. Eventually I would rise up in rebellion. Only after I totally fell apart and conceded to God would He make it all better for me. Once He did, though, you know what happened, right? I would run like the wind – far away from the calling He had for me in that moment, only looking over my shoulder back at Him long enough to shout a quick “thank you” on my way to my next adventure.

Life has a way of teaching us lessons. I would say God has a way, but often He simply steps out of the way and lets the world take a few shots at us. When we live in rebellion, we take ourselves out from under His protection. In that place, He may watch over us (as He did with Job); however, He is not obligated to protect us from our own stupidity and the dangers that lie outside His will.

Over the years I have learned to appreciate those times when trouble confronts me. I didn’t say I like it, just that I have learned to slow down, search my life, and turn to God. These periods tend to clear out areas of our lives that remain untouched during the good times. When all is going well, we tend to slowly lower our gaze and begin enjoying the pleasures of our flesh, neglecting the path God has laid out for us. We get sloppy in our theology, we get lazy in our prayer and Bible study time, and we can easily become entangled in habits and practices that hold us back in our walk with God. Trials and tribulations tend to squeeze us, to cause us to spew out what is living and at work in our hearts. It is then we show what we really believe and reveal what we really feel. As was recently told me, “You can say all you want, but your actions tell me the real story.”

My dear reader and listener, God desires purity in our hearts, purity in our souls, and purity in our actions. He desires holiness in our inner parts. We are called (in our spare time) to put away the works of the flesh, to grow more into the image and likeness of Jesus Christ. Only then can the power of God flow in and through our lives in a meaningful and powerful way. Only then do we lift up the Son and cause those around us to be drawn to Him. Only then can we genuinely show forth the love of God. Anything less causes us to sound like a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. As Peter would describe us in that condition, we are clouds without water. Or, as they say in Texas, we are “all hat and no cattle.” However you choose to frame it, God wants us to be holy even as He is holy.

Whatever is going on in your life or the lives of your loved ones, I encourage you to press in to God, to cling to Him as the waves roll over your soul, to cry out to Him over the roar of the storm. Learn to slow down, look for the revelation God is trying to show you, and allow the power of God to flow into your life. It is in His Presence we find peace, health, wholeness, salvation, joy, and love. Don’t run FROM Him; instead, run TO Him.

Be blessed.