This blog began with the title. It popped into my mind as a result of some Bible notes I had been reading on the book of Job – DON’T PANIC! this is NOT an exposition on Job, the title was inspired by it. So, without further ado, let’s consider The Spiritual Gift Of Weakness
Have you ever watched the TV program “Britain’s Strongest Man”? It is a celebration of human strength as the competitors lift incredible weights and perform amazing feats. When you look at the competitors and what they are to lift and carry, they are super human.
I do not think I would ever qualify for a strong man event but, like many, I have been taught from an early age to be strong, independent and successful.
Even within Christian circles, we can sometimes feel the pressure to appear as though everything is fine. The subtle message that creeps in says “a strong faith never doubts, is never tired is never afraid.”
But this is not what I read in the Bible.
The Bible does not hide human weakness. Instead, it repeatedly shows us that God meets people when they know they cannot go on.
Perhaps weakness is not something we have to overcome.
Perhaps, in the hands of God, weakness can become a spiritual gift.
When Strength Runs Out
The apostle Paul knew what it meant to feel weak.
He pleaded with God three times about, what he referred to as, a “thorn in the flesh” (2 Corinthians 12 vs. 7 – 8). We are not sure what this “thorn” was but, Paul desperately wanted it removed. Yet God’s answer was not to take the weakness away. Instead, God said:
My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness
(2 Corinthians 12 vs. 9)
Paul’s response is remarkable. Rather than becoming bitter, because God had not answered his prayer in the way he wanted, he began to see his weakness differently. He wrote:
Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”
(2 Corinthians 12 vs. 9)
Paul discovered something that I find quite challenging, our weakness can become the place where we encounter God’s strength.
When our resources run out, when our plans fail, when our strength disappears, we discover that God’s grace was never dependent upon our ability.
Dependence In Our Weakness
There is a kind of strength that says, “I can do this myself.”
And there is another kind that says, “I cannot do this without God.”
The second is the strength of dependence. Jesus said, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15 vs.5). I find those words challenging because, I want to fix it! What I am beginning to discover is, those words are also wonderfully freeing.
We were never designed to carry life alone.
We need God.
We need prayer.
We need The Bible.
We need the encouragement and support of other believers.
We need grace.
Weakness has a way of stripping away the illusion that we are self-sufficient. It brings us to the simple prayer:
“Lord, I need you.”
And perhaps that is one of the most powerful prayers we can ever pray.
The God Who Draws Near
One of the most beautiful promises in Scripture is found in Psalm 34:
The Lord is close to the broken hearted
(Psalm 34 vs. 18)
He is close. God is not standing at a distance, waiting for us to pull ourselves together.
He draws near.
He sits with us in the unanswered question.
Sometimes His presence is dramatic.
Often it is not.
Sometimes it is simply enough to know:
“I am not alone.”
There Is A Strength We Cannot See
The world measures strength differently to God.
The world sees what we accomplish, God sees what is happening within us. The world admires independence, God invites dependence. The world tells us to hide our scars, Jesus still carries His. The world says weakness should be overcome, the gospel tells us that the one who appeared weakest at the cross, was accomplishing something the world could never have achieved through it’s strength.
Perhaps, we should be careful about the things we call weakness. The thing that feels like an ending, may become a beginning. The time that feels wasted, may be forming something eternal.
The broken place may become the place through which God’s light enters.
We may not see it yet.
Learning To Receive
Perhaps the Spiritual Gift of Weakness is ultimately the gift of receiving.
Receiving the presence of God.
We are often much better at giving than receiving. We can serve, encourage and carry other people’s burdens. But, weakness puts us in the uncomfortable position of allowing someone else to carry ours.
And perhaps, sometimes, we need the Spiritual Gift of Weakness to remind us that we were never meant to carry everything ourselves.
There is no shame in needing God.
There is no shame in needing others.
There is no shame in admitting that today you do not have much to give.
Sometimes, faith is not about having something to offer.
Sometimes, faith is opening empty hands.