My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in your weakness.
Christ, 2 Corinthians 12:9
“For My power is made perfect in your weakness.” How many times have I heard these words and how many times have I just as quickly forgotten them?
Let’s be real. The last thing most of us want to be is weak. In a culture and society where achievement is our measure of success, weakness is the basis of failure. It’s as if weakness is something to be feared, hidden away under the bed.
But what if there was a higher purpose for those weaknesses? What if weakness is something that pushes us closer to the Father?
Let me explain.
A Look Back at Weakness
When I look back at my own life I can see times when I thought I had it all together. Going in to high school, I thought I knew exactly where my life was going. But when my grandmother suddenly passed away, my world was shocked and I lost control. I felt weak and out of touch- as if I couldn’t do anything right.
I struggled with depression and anxiety for a few years, letting darkness become more of a reality than the light of Christ. It wasn’t until some beautiful, God honoring mentors got into the thick of it with me, saw my mess and weakness and showed me Christ, that I saw the light again. I realized that I needed to lose the “control” I thought I had to become more reliant on Christ- who ultimately is in control anyway.
Throughout the Bible there are stories about God using weak people to further His kingdom. I immediately think of Jonah. Jonah let fear drive his decision making and instead of staying strong and following the Lord, he went the opposite direction. You can read more about Jonah’s story here. Even still, God took Jonah’s weakness and still fulfilled His will. What if the evidence of weakness in our lives exists so that we have nothing else to cling to but the Lord?
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Control Freak
I think it’s funny how often we think we know what we’re doing and cling to what we believe to be control. We plan our lives, order things the way we want and then execute. Then, we spin out of control when things don’t go our way. But if everything went the way we wanted it to go, why would we need a Savior?
One of the hardest things I’ve experienced in my short 21 years of living is chronic pain. Similarly to Paul and the thorn in his side found in 2 Corinthians, I feel as though the pain I experience on a daily basis is purposeful. I know that the pain reminds me moment by moment that I am not in control.Do I know for sure this is the reason why I experience pain? No, I don’t. But, when I am weak, I remember who is in control. I serve a strong God. If you’re curious to know more about my health journey, you can read this post.
Maybe you struggle with habitual sin. Or perhaps you also manage difficult health problems. Maybe you’re grieving a loss or experiencing financial trouble. Whatever the difficultly or weakness may be, it might be in your life to push you to Jesus. I guess what I’m getting at is weakness is the key to success.
You may be thinking right now, “Wait, huh? How is weakness the key to success? Didn’t you just explain how weakness is the opposite of successful?” Yes. By our culture’s definition, weakness is the antithesis of success. In order for my idea to work, we have to change our definition of success.
Weakness as Success
From a Christian perspective, the two greatest commandments we are called to follow in this life are to love God and love others. As a part of that love, our goal should be to share His plan of redemption with others and live differently than the world. We are in the world, yes, but not of it. So it only makes sense that we should live by different definitions than the culture around us.
I think success, as Christians, looks like relying fully on Christ and not ourselves. It looks like trusting in His plan over our own. It means surrendering our own desires and dreams for His will. If we were strong enough on our own, we wouldn’t have a need for Jesus. We are incapable of living perfect lives- as evidenced by the sin in them. When it comes to desires of the flesh or worldly living, we are often weak.
But there is good news. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. The Lord sees our weakness and still, He loves us. How amazing is it that we can literally spend day after day messing up and yet, the Lord still calls us His children? He offers us “grace upon grace”- literally if one portion of grace isn’t enough, there’s more still!
Weaknesses for the Kingdom
So what am I saying in all of this? I believe we experience weakness to better rely on Jesus. We face hardship and trial so the Lord can be known to us and others in the midst of it. We are even called to boast in our weaknesses so that the power of the Lord can work in us. I think a stronger testimony of God’s love is a life fraught with weakness with the person relying on God rather than a perfectly “strong” life lived without Him.
I’d like to emphasize something of which my dad reminded me last night. We should not let our identity be found in our weaknesses. The wrong move is to let ourselves become victims of our hardship. When we let our weaknesses define us, we are letting the enemy speak lies over our lives. The only thing that should ever define us is God- the Creator and Author of our lives. We need to put our “weaknesses” in the right place.
What are we supposed to do with our weaknesses then? Let them push us to the feet of Jesus. Let us lay down our need for control and instead pick up His grace. His grace is sufficient for us- we don’t need to keep striving. In fact, if we don’t live with His grace and instead try to manage on our own, we’ll wind up here again.
Dear friend, if you are experiencing weakness, take heart. There is a loving Father who is sitting with open arms ready to welcome you- failures and all. Let your weakness be a way for the Lord to work in your life. Share your story with others and explain how God is moving in the midst of trials. Let the Grace of Jesus wash over you and be sufficient for you today, tomorrow, and the next.
If I know one thing, it’s that weaknesses will come no matter what. We are living imperfect lives and always will on this side of Heaven. But maybe those weaknesses exist for the success of the Kingdom, the furthering of Christ’s love and salvation.
Boasting in my weaknesses with you.
Hugs,
