2 Corinthians 12:9-10

[The Lord] 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. 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.

The apostle Paul revealed that he had suffered a thorn in the flesh. He didn’t give any hint of what kind of thorn this was, so there have been endless suggestions over the centuries. It may well have been a physical difficulty, and it has often been suggested that he had a speech impediment. This would account for him being described as a poor preacher. It might well have been a mental or spiritual difficulty instead. We just don’t know, and it really doesn’t matter. What matters is the spiritual lesson that it taught him, namely that God finds it easiest to work in us through our weakness rather than our strength.

A strong person is tempted to think that they can do everything by themselves – that they have no need for God. The person who is weak, on the other hand, knows their limitations. They are eager to find support from others and gladly welcome God’s strength. Paul was fiercely criticised for the weakness of his public ministry. As a minister, I wince at the sharpness of their criticisms, and it is clear that they wounded Paul deeply. He had established the church in Corinth, so it was incredibly precious to him, and the barrage of criticisms must have been especially hard to bear. His answer to his critics, however, was that all the problems that he had faced had actually been a blessing because they had taught him to rely completely on God.

All of us will face challenging times in the future, even if life is easy and straightforward at the moment. Praise God that in those days of greatest weakness we will discover more and more of his strength.

Question

When have you experienced God’s strength in times of weakness?

Prayer

Lord God, I thank you that I can look to the future with confidence because you will always fill me with the strength that I need to face any challenge. Amen