Sufficient Grace

II Cor. 12: So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud. 8 Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. 9 Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 10 That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.“My power works best in weakness.” Jesus ChristIt’s a paradox. It’s upside down. It is counter-cultural. Dare we say it? It’s anti-American. Power in weakness? What kind of misguided statement is that?And what about the person speaking it? Does He know what He’s talking about? Can He relate to power working best in weakness? Yep, He surely can.There was no greater symbol of weakness and humiliation in the Roman world than the cross, so God chose that weak thing to shame the strong. Let’s get some insight from Paul in I Corinthians 1:18, “The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.” No one at that time could have guessed that that episode, that debacle on Golgotha, would prove to be the greatest display of God’s power—ever. A wooden, Roman cross bearing a tattered, tortured man gave the appearance of the ultimate weakness, BUT it stands now, as then, as the triumph of Almighty God over sin, the evil one, death, and the grave! Now that’s power, baby!What then for us? Maybe just this: things may not always be what they appear to be. That calamity, that dire circumstance, that set-back, that betrayal, that rebellion, that loss, that utter failure, that WEAKNESS (in all of its representative forms), may just be the perfect forum for God to display His power—if we will trust Him, in spite of how things may look. In A.D. 33, things didn’t look all that good on Friday, but the outlook surely did change on Sunday morning.Well, maybe it’s Friday in your life at the moment. Can I encourage you to hang on, BECAUSE SUNDAY IS COMING! In God the weak can become strong. As a matter of fact, God says His power works BEST in weakness. So if you are currently experiencing a period of weakness, take notice, for you just may be on the verge of a Power Surge!Abba Father, help us to really believe that your power is made perfect in weakness; lift us up; buoy our spirits; help us to see the reality of Your strength regardless of our thorn(s) and that attacks of the evil one. We know that we are weak, but we yearn to know the greatness of Your power in our lives. Amen.