DAY FOURTEEN - WHEN I AM WEAK HE IS STRONG
I have often heard people say the phrase, "God won't give you anything you can't handle". I have nodded in agreement with this before, but have recently spent time thinking on this.
I think we have found comfort in these words believing that we will get through whatever hardships we are facing at the time, because God wouldn't give me anything "I" couldn't handle.
Upon further contemplation, I don't think God's plan is for us to "handle it" at all. I do believe that when bad things do happen to us, He is there to walk beside us and help us change and grow through our experiences. I believe that the times I have grown most, have been the times that I have been completely out of my realm of 'handling it'. And these are the times that the glory is all God's, as I've had nothing left to give. And I wonder - is life really about me being able to "handle it" at all?
Here's Paul's view on being weak. He is addressing the Corinthian church:
2 Cor 12 MSG
"7...so [that] I wouldn't get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan's angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn't think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me,
My grace is enough; it's all you need.
My strength comes into its own in your weakness.
Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become."
The problem is, when we are struck with some sort of limitation or "thorn in our flesh" our immediate response is similar to Paul, in that we seek the Lord to be a magic healer who should take away our pain at our beck and call. And when He doesn't respond in the way we expect, we wonder why He's forsaken us.
I don't think there is anything wrong with asking God to remove our pain however, imagine if we quit focusing on our limitation and focused instead on God's ability through us? I believe our worldview would change. I have often seen that our response to God when He hasn't done what we requested is bitterness. Bitterness is the worst poison.
Hebrews 12 says, "15 See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many."
Bitterness spends a lot of time causing trouble - it takes a lot of energy and time. Rather than spending our efforts on being bitter, what if we spent our energy on seeing what God could do through us and our weaknesses. Remember how God said His strength could move in our weaknesses? That actually means I HAVE TO be weak! And then who gets the glory? God, of course! And that is what it's about. Bringing glory to God, not to you or me or our own abilities.
When I have seen someone struggle with a limitation, I can understand completely why they would be frustrated or annoyed by it. But I have been most inspired by those who have looked past their weakness and and overcome it, by not letting it rule their life.
Here is an amazing 2 part video of an Australian man named Kurt Fearnley who uses his weaknesses to encourage and inspire others.
I think we have found comfort in these words believing that we will get through whatever hardships we are facing at the time, because God wouldn't give me anything "I" couldn't handle.
Upon further contemplation, I don't think God's plan is for us to "handle it" at all. I do believe that when bad things do happen to us, He is there to walk beside us and help us change and grow through our experiences. I believe that the times I have grown most, have been the times that I have been completely out of my realm of 'handling it'. And these are the times that the glory is all God's, as I've had nothing left to give. And I wonder - is life really about me being able to "handle it" at all?
Here's Paul's view on being weak. He is addressing the Corinthian church:
2 Cor 12 MSG
"7...so [that] I wouldn't get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan's angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn't think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me,
My grace is enough; it's all you need.
My strength comes into its own in your weakness.
Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become."
The problem is, when we are struck with some sort of limitation or "thorn in our flesh" our immediate response is similar to Paul, in that we seek the Lord to be a magic healer who should take away our pain at our beck and call. And when He doesn't respond in the way we expect, we wonder why He's forsaken us.
I don't think there is anything wrong with asking God to remove our pain however, imagine if we quit focusing on our limitation and focused instead on God's ability through us? I believe our worldview would change. I have often seen that our response to God when He hasn't done what we requested is bitterness. Bitterness is the worst poison.
Hebrews 12 says, "15 See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many."
Bitterness spends a lot of time causing trouble - it takes a lot of energy and time. Rather than spending our efforts on being bitter, what if we spent our energy on seeing what God could do through us and our weaknesses. Remember how God said His strength could move in our weaknesses? That actually means I HAVE TO be weak! And then who gets the glory? God, of course! And that is what it's about. Bringing glory to God, not to you or me or our own abilities.
When I have seen someone struggle with a limitation, I can understand completely why they would be frustrated or annoyed by it. But I have been most inspired by those who have looked past their weakness and and overcome it, by not letting it rule their life.
Here is an amazing 2 part video of an Australian man named Kurt Fearnley who uses his weaknesses to encourage and inspire others.
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