But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9
If I took this as chance to boast in ALL of my weaknesses I’m really terrified how long this post would end up being. There might be things on the list you would expect to see from everyone: laziness, arrogance, gossip, unkind thoughts. But there would also be items that might possibly surprise you: hatred, deceitfulness, despair, profanity, self-loathing, lack of compassion… and on and on.
And yet, Paul says that I should be ready to BOAST in these weaknesses. To remind myself and others that I am merely “one beggar telling another beggar where he found bread.” (D.T. Niles)
-Can I tell you how I sometimes waste hours of my time looking at numbers and statistics on social media sites hoping that someone is reading?
-Shall I tell you how often I crumple into tears because I feel overwhelmed?
-Need I mention how often I have to recite Nehemiah 6:3 to remind myself that what I’m doing matters? ( “I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down…”)
-I believe lies about my body and my looks and my clothes and my usefulness.
-I lap up gossip.
-I think of myself before anyone else.
-I serve out of convenience.
-I live for the present.
And now I’m supposed to boast? How?
When I am weak, then He is strong.
I boast in Him. I shout that He is the One who is doing the work and (thankfully) this work is not yet completed. I remember that He does not abandon the works of His hands. I recall the Prodigal Son and the arms that were reached out and extended in joyful exclamations. I remember that brokenness leads to repentance. I rejoice in the fact that He paid a debt I could not pay. I ask that He work in spite of me.
Help me, Lord.
“I am a bow on your hands, Lord. Draw me, lest I rot. Do not overdraw me, Lord, I shall break. Overdraw me, Lord, and who cares if I break.” – Nikos Kazantzakis
Following,
Ginger
