Wednesday, June 10, 2009

If God Needs Anything From Me, Is it My Weakness?

Today someone shared that they had been reading in 2 Corinthians 12 during their devotional time together as a family. I’m sure you’re familiar with the verses even if you don’t know the reference. It’s the part where Paul is talking about not boasting in anything except his weaknesses. Then she made this statement: “I think this is saying that if God were to ever need anything from us He would want our weakness.” Well, I immediately wrote that down and knew I was going to have to think about that and do a little digging. She didn’t say that God needs something from us but if He did it would probably be our weakness.
Well, I don’t know about you but I don’t like having weaknesses. I don’t want to sit around talking about them over coffee with friends. They are what get in the way of me living a victorious, abundant, life to the full kind of day. I can spend so much time focusing on not walking in fear, for example, that I forget to access the power Christ in me when fear crops up!
Paul, on the other hand, says this: In 2 Cor. 11:30b “If I have to boast, I will boast of what pertains to my weakness.” In 2Cr 12:5- he says “but on my own behalf I will not boast, except in regard to {my} weaknesses.” After asking God several times to remove his “thorn in the flesh” God said no. and this is what else He said: "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." (2 Cor. 12:9)
Paul goes on to say: “Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore, I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2:Cor.12:9b-10)
The list of things that Paul is well content with is what I usually want to avoid or pray for God to get me out of. Finally, when I realize that I have to go through “it” (and Him being with me, of course), I say: "Can we please hurry up so I can get on with experiencing the abundant life that you died to give me?!!!!!!"
I wonder what would happen if stopped despising my weaknesses but looked at them as an opportunity for God’s power to show up strong in me. I do have a choice right? About how I choose to look at things? Maybe my weaknesses aren’t keeping me from experiencing HIS life in me but an even greater opportunity for Him to express HIS life through me? I think ya, maybe. I’m going to think some more while I exercise. Before I know it, my boy will be home from school. Maybe we can share a little grace, a little truth and some LIFE together!!!!