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Envoy Rally Point Call- Month 4, Week 2
Theme: Strength in Weakness
This week we continued our journey through Endurance, but we slowed down long enough to confront a truth most of us instinctively resist:
Endurance is not built by avoiding weakness.It is formed by meeting God inside it.
From the opening prayer on the rally call, the invitation was simple but weighty: To engage this topic honestly, without pressure, performance, or pretending. Not to rush past discomfort, but to let the Lord speak into the places where strength feels absent.
Because Scripture does not deny weakness.It redeems it.
Grace That Meets Us Where We Fail
We anchored the conversation in Paul’s words:
“My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.”- 2 Corinthians 12:9
“For when I am weak, then I am strong.”- 2 Corinthians 12:10
Paul does not minimize his thorn. He names it. He pleads for its removal. And God’s response is not explanation, but presence.
Grace does not erase weakness.Grace reframes it.
Isaiah echoes the same truth:
“He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might He increases strength.”- Isaiah 40:29
“God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.”- 1 Corinthians 1:27
God does not wait for strength to appear.He supplies it where none exists.
When Weakness Becomes the Place of God’s Work
One of the central themes we explored is how upside-down the Kingdom truly is.
The world equates strength with control, safety, dominance, and certainty. Scripture consistently reveals something else:
God draws near to the brokenhearted
God lifts the humble
God resists the proud
God perfects power where self-reliance dies
Weakness strips away illusions—especially the illusion that we were ever holding things together ourselves.
And this is not abstract theology. It is revealed most clearly at the cross.
What looked like defeat was victory.What looked like weakness was power.What looked like loss was the defeat of sin and death.
The cross did not contradict God’s strength.It revealed it.
Weakness: Despair or Dependence
We reflected together on a sobering question:
Weakness will always lead somewhere.Either into despair - or into dependence.
When weakness drives us inward, it corrodes.When weakness drives us toward God, it sanctifies.
During the call, we invited reflection on three levels:
Heart
Where do you feel weak right now?
Where have you felt tempted to hide or compensate?
What do you fear would happen if you stopped trying to look strong?
Head
Why do you think God so often works through weakness instead of removing it?
How does the Cross reshape what ‘strength’ really means?
What lies have we absorbed about what faith is supposed to feel like?
Hands
What would leaning in look like this week instead of pushing through?
Where might God be inviting surrender rather than effort?
Who could you invite into your weakness instead of isolating?
Endurance is not passive waiting.It is active trust.
A Practice of Release
We ended with a simple but profound practice.
Each person was invited to silently name an area of weakness—something real, current, and costly—and to release self-reliance in that place.
Not asking God to fix it immediately.But asking for grace to walk through it faithfully.
“Jesus, I release the need to prove myself. I lay down self-reliance over this. I receive Your sufficient grace over this. Teach me to abide and stay with You. Amen.”
This is how endurance is formed, not by powering through, but by staying present with God in the places we’d rather escape.
Endurance Through Sanctified Weakness
Weakness is not an interruption to spiritual growth.It is often the means of it.
Sanctification rarely happens in seasons of ease. It is forged in surrender, humility, and trust, eyes fixed on Christ when the path is unclear and strength feels thin.
As we move forward through this month, the call remains the same:
Do not despise weakness
Do not hide it
Do not idolize strength
Trust the sufficiency of grace
God is not asking you to be strong enough.He is asking you to stay close enough.
A Final Word
We’ll be pausing our Thursday rally calls over Christmas and New Year’s, but weekly dispatches will continue as normal. This rhythm of rest is intentional, and good.
Thank you for walking this journey faithfully.Thank you for your honesty, presence, and hunger for formation.
May we learn to endure - not by avoiding weakness - but by discovering God’s power within it.
Grace is sufficient.Power is perfected.Endurance is being formed.
God is with us.
“Father, Teach us to trust You where we can’t trust ourselves. Strip away pride and self-reliance. Form endurance in us through humility and dependence. And help us finish the course You’ve given us - faithfully. We fix our eyes on you Jesus. Amen.”
I’m glad you’re here.
Let’s run the race - Eyes Up, Chin Up!
Grace and peace,
Sam Johnston
By Christ Focused NetworkEnvoy Rally Point Call- Month 4, Week 2
Theme: Strength in Weakness
This week we continued our journey through Endurance, but we slowed down long enough to confront a truth most of us instinctively resist:
Endurance is not built by avoiding weakness.It is formed by meeting God inside it.
From the opening prayer on the rally call, the invitation was simple but weighty: To engage this topic honestly, without pressure, performance, or pretending. Not to rush past discomfort, but to let the Lord speak into the places where strength feels absent.
Because Scripture does not deny weakness.It redeems it.
Grace That Meets Us Where We Fail
We anchored the conversation in Paul’s words:
“My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.”- 2 Corinthians 12:9
“For when I am weak, then I am strong.”- 2 Corinthians 12:10
Paul does not minimize his thorn. He names it. He pleads for its removal. And God’s response is not explanation, but presence.
Grace does not erase weakness.Grace reframes it.
Isaiah echoes the same truth:
“He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might He increases strength.”- Isaiah 40:29
“God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.”- 1 Corinthians 1:27
God does not wait for strength to appear.He supplies it where none exists.
When Weakness Becomes the Place of God’s Work
One of the central themes we explored is how upside-down the Kingdom truly is.
The world equates strength with control, safety, dominance, and certainty. Scripture consistently reveals something else:
God draws near to the brokenhearted
God lifts the humble
God resists the proud
God perfects power where self-reliance dies
Weakness strips away illusions—especially the illusion that we were ever holding things together ourselves.
And this is not abstract theology. It is revealed most clearly at the cross.
What looked like defeat was victory.What looked like weakness was power.What looked like loss was the defeat of sin and death.
The cross did not contradict God’s strength.It revealed it.
Weakness: Despair or Dependence
We reflected together on a sobering question:
Weakness will always lead somewhere.Either into despair - or into dependence.
When weakness drives us inward, it corrodes.When weakness drives us toward God, it sanctifies.
During the call, we invited reflection on three levels:
Heart
Where do you feel weak right now?
Where have you felt tempted to hide or compensate?
What do you fear would happen if you stopped trying to look strong?
Head
Why do you think God so often works through weakness instead of removing it?
How does the Cross reshape what ‘strength’ really means?
What lies have we absorbed about what faith is supposed to feel like?
Hands
What would leaning in look like this week instead of pushing through?
Where might God be inviting surrender rather than effort?
Who could you invite into your weakness instead of isolating?
Endurance is not passive waiting.It is active trust.
A Practice of Release
We ended with a simple but profound practice.
Each person was invited to silently name an area of weakness—something real, current, and costly—and to release self-reliance in that place.
Not asking God to fix it immediately.But asking for grace to walk through it faithfully.
“Jesus, I release the need to prove myself. I lay down self-reliance over this. I receive Your sufficient grace over this. Teach me to abide and stay with You. Amen.”
This is how endurance is formed, not by powering through, but by staying present with God in the places we’d rather escape.
Endurance Through Sanctified Weakness
Weakness is not an interruption to spiritual growth.It is often the means of it.
Sanctification rarely happens in seasons of ease. It is forged in surrender, humility, and trust, eyes fixed on Christ when the path is unclear and strength feels thin.
As we move forward through this month, the call remains the same:
Do not despise weakness
Do not hide it
Do not idolize strength
Trust the sufficiency of grace
God is not asking you to be strong enough.He is asking you to stay close enough.
A Final Word
We’ll be pausing our Thursday rally calls over Christmas and New Year’s, but weekly dispatches will continue as normal. This rhythm of rest is intentional, and good.
Thank you for walking this journey faithfully.Thank you for your honesty, presence, and hunger for formation.
May we learn to endure - not by avoiding weakness - but by discovering God’s power within it.
Grace is sufficient.Power is perfected.Endurance is being formed.
God is with us.
“Father, Teach us to trust You where we can’t trust ourselves. Strip away pride and self-reliance. Form endurance in us through humility and dependence. And help us finish the course You’ve given us - faithfully. We fix our eyes on you Jesus. Amen.”
I’m glad you’re here.
Let’s run the race - Eyes Up, Chin Up!
Grace and peace,
Sam Johnston