For the kingdom of God does not consist in words but in power. (1 Corinthians 4:20 NASB)
It was not too long ago that I felt like I could pretty much hit the ball as far as I wanted to. Obviously, there was a limit to how far I could really hit the ball, but I could tap into an extra gear to get ten or twenty more yards when I needed to. To my dismay, now I would be thrilled if I could just get within twenty yards of my average drive just three or four years ago.
I don’t need to bore you with the details or appeal for your sympathy by laying out the health issues that I have had in recent years, but one thing is for sure, I have lost my power.
Though the Apostle Paul was not a golfer, he too noticed a power failure in his life as well. We do not know exactly what it was, but he referred to it as a thorn in the flesh. “Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me – to keep me from exalting myself” (2 Corinthians 12:7)!
At first, Paul wanted God to remove this infirmity from his life. “Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me” (2 Corinthians 12:8). However, God did not come to his rescue. He did not answer Paul’s prayer request in the manner that he asked for it. Nonetheless, Paul got an answer to his prayer.
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However, dependence on God is much easier in concept than it is to put in practice.
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“And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)
I have tried to accept where I am physically, but I am yet to really get to the state of mind that Paul is in when writing this letter. Paul understood something that I am still wrestling with – the weaker he felt the more power he received from the Lord. He understood something that Jesus modeled perfectly; God’s power through him is greater than his own strength.
You might be nodding your head in agreement, but that is much harder to accept than it is to believe. I believe that God can do a lot of things; however, it is a much different story when it comes to turning everything over to God and trusting him with the outcome. I still want to maintain a level of control and use my own abilities to get things done. Even when doing the Lord’s work, I usually depend on my own strength.
Jesus modeled something different, and Paul was quicker than I am to understand it. “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner” (John 5:19). Jesus depended on his heavenly father for his strength in everything he did, “because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me” (John 5:30).
This is what Paul learned, and what I feel God is teaching me in this season of life. However, dependence on God is much easier in concept than it is to put in practice. I am learning, though, that the weaker I get, the stronger he becomes in my life. It is my hope that you are learning this as well and that one day we can all make the claim that Paul made, “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 Corinthians 12:10).
May you recognize that the power source of the Holy Spirit is much stronger than you will ever be.