“Take a good look, friends, at who you
were when you got called into this life. Isn’t it obvious that God deliberately
chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses?” (1
Corinthians 1:26-28; MSG, para.)
Sometimes I need to sit and remember where I was
and who I was when I stepped across the line into this God-obedient life. At my
core, I’ve always been me; this person who lives my life now always has been in
there. It’s just that it was buried under layers of depression, persecution,
addiction. And as I still struggle with being human – selfishness,
insecurities, distraction, rebellion – there are moments I wonder if I’m really
cut out for being a messenger in this God-life.
But God uses the dim bulbs to show how bright
his light can shine.
How powerful the story of a person so beaten
down who rises up in hope and light and goodness once he surrenders to God! How
powerful the miracle of one who was so very lost and living in darkness who
finds healing in Jesus and is forever changed! Flipping through the Gospels,
the pages are littered with exactly these stories. The blind, the lame, the
lepers, the tax collectors, the prostitutes, the dregs of society – these were the people to whom Jesus was the
closest.
Going back through the Old Testament, the story
isn’t much different. Time and again, God chose the weak and insecure to do his
greatest works. Jacob was a liar, Moses was a murder and fugitive who couldn’t
speak well, Gideon was insecure, David was an adulterer1... The list
goes on.
God doesn’t choose the squeaky-clean to carry
his strongest messages.
Holding myself to high standards, it’s easy to
feel like a screw-up and a failure. What I forget in my humanity is that God
finds strength in my weakness. If I am strong on my own, what need have I of
God? I was broken that I could be mended, wounded that I could be healed and
mired in darkness that I might come forth as a bearer of light.
“But he
said to me, “My Grace is sufficient for you, my power is made perfect in
weakness.” Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on
the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s
strength moving in my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good
cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size – abuse, accidents,
opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get,
the stronger I become.” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10; NIV/MSG)
My prayer today is that when I feel weak I
remember that in my weakness, God shows his strength. May I remember that the
core of my message lies in the miracle of healing by Jesus, who brought me
forth from darkness into light, pulled me from the depths, resurrected me from
the dead.
Amen! =D
1 Genesis 27; Exodus 2:11-15; 4:10-12;
Judges 6:15; 2 Samuel 11:2-5
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