I greet you in Jesus' precious Name. It is Monday morning, the 4th of December 2023, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness."
2 Corinthians 12:9

That is after Paul, the apostle, pleaded with the Lord three times to remove the thorn from his flesh.

For when I am weak, then I am strong.
2 Corinthians 12:10

Are you suffering today, my dear friend, with some physical disability, some thorn in the flesh? Are you saying, but Lord, why are you not taking it away? Lord, why have my prayers not been answered? I want to tell you about Paul. Paul is one of my heroes in the Bible. He was an incredible man of God. He was responsible for writing almost two-thirds of the New Testament. Paul was very confident and a fearless warrior for Jesus, but the physical disability must have slowed him down. To be overconfident and successful is a great danger in a Christian's life. You know, the safest place to be is on your knees because when you're on your knees, you can't fall any further. Remember the old saying: Pride always comes before a fall. When a man gets too full of himself, he ends up falling, badly. I will not preach a message to a large crowd from a platform or a pulpit without first getting on my knees. The Lord taught me that when I first started preaching. Before I start preaching, I read Psalm 19:14 -

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.

I knew a preacher with a terrible speech impediment; he stuttered very badly. But when he got into the pulpit or onto a platform, the stutter left him, and he preached a beautiful message every time. He stuttered off the platform, but when he got on that platform, no problems at all. You know, in my humble opinion, one of South Africa's premier artists is a young man who had a terrible cycling accident. He was a keen cyclist. He was partially paralysed for two months, with brain injuries, but through persistence and help from his family and other artists, he has become one of South Africa's premier artists - definitely my favourite.

Today, do not be afraid of that thorn in your flesh. Embrace it and press on. God will use it for your benefit.

Jesus bless you and goodbye.