Weakness Isn’t A Bad Thing

Posted on May 15, 2023 by Elizabeth Welte in Freedom Fighters

“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 of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” 2 Corinthians 12:9

Have you ever found yourself in a position of feeling very weak? Maybe not physically, but maybe you’ve been emotionally drained. Your spiritual tank on empty? Maybe just plain wrung out from life itself?

Weakness isn’t a bad thing. I love the writings of Dr. Paul David Tripp, and if you’ve never picked up a copy of his daily devotional, New Morning Mercies: A Daily Gospel Devotional, I want to recommend you do. It is available from Amazon in hardcover and Kindle.

Here’s what he writes about weakness:

“I have said it many, many times and I will say it more than once in this devotional— our problem is not our weakness; God’s grace is up to the task. Our problem is our delusions of strength that keep us from seeking the grace that strengthens us in our weakness. We just don’t like to be weak. We don’t like to think of ourselves that way, and we don’t want others to see us that way. So we act as if we know things that we don’t know, and we don’t ask the questions we need to ask. We act as if we can handle things that we can’t handle, and we don’t seek the help that’s available. We act as if we’ve conquered things that we have not conquered, and we don’t reach out for help for the battle. It is all a failed quest for the self-congratulatory glory of independence.
But we are not independent. None of us are. We were not created to be independent. We were formed to be dependent on the One who made us, and we were re-created in Jesus Christ to be dependent on his grace. God does not hold you to a standard of independent strength. God does not expect of you what you do not have. He knows who you are. He is never shocked or dismayed by your weakness. He has moved toward you in grace because you are weak and would have no hope in life and death without him.
The person who is shocked and dismayed by your weakness is you. It bothers you. It embarrasses you. It makes you want to hide and cover yourself. It causes you to playact in public and to deceive yourself in private. Your weakness will drive you crazy unless you understand the gospel of Jesus. What is that message? It is the story of a strong and able Savior who showers his powerful grace on people who are fundamentally weak and unable. He confronts you with your weakness so you will run to him for strength. He calls you to mountains too big to climb so that in your inability, you will look to him. He leads you to taste failure so that you will find your hope in him. He works to prove to you how weak you really are so that you will gladly accept his invitation to enabling grace.
Perhaps it’s not such a bad thing to come to the end of your rope if at the end of your rope you find a strong and willing Savior. So don’t be afraid to cry out in weakness, because when you affirm your weakness, you are teaching your heart to esteem and celebrate the grace that can make you strong. Sometime in the next week, you’ll be confronted with your weakness; when you are, you’ll either work to convince yourself you’re strong or you’ll run to the One who is.”
Tripp, Paul David (2014-10-31). New Morning Mercies: A Daily Gospel Devotional (Kindle Locations 4458-4476). Crossway. Kindle Edition.

I don’t know about you, but I sure needed that reminder. Hope it will encourage you. I appreciate you joining us on the journey.

 

Written by Bill Welte: President/CEO of America’s Keswick: Bill has been married to his childhood sweetheart for 40+ years and has four married kids and 12 amazing grandkids. He loves music and is an avid reader.


Think About This: “We live and die; Christ died and lived!” – John Scott

The Daily Bible Reading: Psalm 28, 55, 2 Samuel 16-17You can download our 2023 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here. 

This Week’s Verse to Memorize: “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;” – Hebrews 1:1-2

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