Friday 19 May 2017

May 19: 2 Corinthians 12:1-10

Key Verse: 2 Corinthians 12:9
But he said to me, “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.

Devotion:
So much to talk about and yet so little space. I wonder if this is how Paul thought when he was writing these words! How do you look at life? Do you look at all the good things which have happened and think about how good life is, or do you look at all the bad things in life and think how horrible it is to be alive? Or maybe, like most of us, you weigh up the good and the bad before giving your opinion on life.

Paul does something a bit different here and makes sure he brings God into the equation; for if we leave God out we are leaving out the most important thing in our lives! When we know what God has in store for us in life after death we can look forward to what is going to happen to us; but don’t let us get caught up in the despondency of death itself or the great glory of life eternal – just those thoughts may make us wish we were dead to this world so we could be with Christ in Heaven!

Instead we need to take comfort in the words given to Paul and to us: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” When we lament at the bad things in our life or how we cannot do things, we need to remember that nothing is impossible for God. When we have Him in our lives, He is willing and able to do things for us and with us which we could not even think about without Him. His strength is able to make us whole. His grace is able to allow us to live with the dross we have in our lives.

Look to God and invite Him in to give you grace to accept your life, strength to endure it, wisdom to learn from it and courage to take these examples and use them for the furtherance of His Word. Take what God has allowed in your life and show others how God has brought you out the other side with His power and His might alone!

Points to Ponder:
When was the last time you just wanted to stop and give up?

Are you willing to ask God for His strength to continue on?