Christ’s Power On Display In Our Weakness & In Our Struggles

What do you need God’s power for in your life right now—today? What struggles are you carrying? What are you trying to do on your own?

2 Corinthians 12:9 says:

“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.”

Paul was honest about his humanity and weaknesses and also so attuned to God’s heart.

The way of God is so different from the way of the world. The way of the world will tempt us to try to hide our failings, mistakes, and issues from other people. We may try to make ourselves look good to others… To put on a face to show the world you’ve got what it takes. To hide your pain, to hide your worries, your insecurities— To hide it all behind an inauthentic face of perfection or “doing it well”. You may be tempted to hide your failings and imperfections because you’ve been burned by others before, judged, talked about, looked down upon or condescended to because of your issues. If that has occurred to you, I am so sorry. That response is not the way of Jesus. I’ve sometimes been treated that way too by others and been tempted to hide my struggles and failings, not desiring to be treated by others in a wrong way again. The thing is, though, when people treat you one of those ways, they are showing themselves to you, and it is likely an indicator for you to limit your time with them or find other people entirely to spend most of your time with…

Choose instead to surround yourself with other people who desire to be authentic about themselves and their struggles and place their eyes on and their faith in Jesus. Choose people who will encourage you to keep improving and working toward healthy goals, those who will spur you on toward God and desiring Him.

God doesn’t want you to hide your issues, your struggles. He doesn’t want you to hide that pain, those insecurities.

Bring it all to Him for He cares for you.

Don’t hide that failing, that sin. Confess it, fight it, seek forgiveness for it— ask God to help you fight it. Rely on His strength, His power, His help in your life. Don’t try to go it alone. Don’t do it on your own.

You weren’t made to deal with all your stuff alone. You were made for relationship, for a relationship with the One true God, who sees you, who loves you, who has the power and ability to help you walk through each and every struggle in your life.

Paul boasted about what he struggled in and what He had difficulty with— so that God’s name could be great. He was honest about his weaknesses, his failings. He identified them. He faced them. He owned them.

And then, not in shame, but in humility, he gave them to God. Did you know that before Paul came into a relationship with God, he actually was a murderer? He was zealous with his beliefs and was responsible for the murder of many Christians, many believers. He believed he was right until God orchestrated a divine encounter with him (he went by Saul at the time) on the Damascus road, while Saul (now Paul) was headed to track down more believers of Jesus to kill them too. And God grabbed ahold of Saul’s life (now Paul), and in that encounter, Paul’s life and heart were changed. His name was changed too after his conversion.

You see, Saul was persecuting Christians in the name of God, but he did not actually know God. He didn’t have a relationship with God. He just knew a lot about God, and his beliefs didn’t align with God’s heart or plan.

But God was running after him, pursuing him, because God loved him greatly.

And did you know— God loves you greatly too. He says “come to me all you who are weary and heavy burdened and I will give you rest.” [Matthew 11:28]

What heavy burdens do you have today, friend? I know I have a few myself. He calls us to lay them down before Him. To be honest. To be humble. To ask for Him to help us. We were not to carry our burdens alone. His grace will cover over our weaknesses, our failings, our burdens.

His power is made perfect in our weakness… when we recognize our need for Him and ask Him for His help in our lives, when we believe and trust that He loves us and will care for us.

It is counterintuitive, but it is true. When we, in our weakness, acknowledge it and ask God for His power, His strength, He will respond and fill us with His strength— As verse 10 says, “For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

I don’t know about you friend, but I am thankful I don’t have to do it on my own. God is holding onto me, and He’s holding onto you too.