2 Corinthians 12:8-10

My View From The Chair -2 Corinthians 12:8-10 Confession: I am Weak

Please don’t judge me, but see that bed? Yes, that bed right there in the photo above. The one with the super soft yellow blanket? This bed is one of my favorite places to cocoon. It is a place of solitude, rest, and rejuvenation. To be honest, it is also the place I run when I am weak; overwhelmed by circumstances; reeling from grief; and desperate to hear God speak to me. Where do you run when you are facing your giants? Let’s be honest, we all have them. I know, the world says not to show our weaknesses but I’m done hiding. Here is the plain and simple truth…I am weak and so are you.

Last Thursday evening this is where I found myself, instead of where I had intended to be… at a women’s conference at my own church. I was cocooned in my own bed at 7:00pm “discussing” with the Lord why I should pull out of a ministry commitment for the following night (yes, it was for the same conference just in case your were wondering). The week had trounced on me with the velocity of a leopard pouncing on its prey. I was inundated with overwhelming responsibilities at work. I was drowning beneath a steady deluge of grief. My chest felt like someone had placed a lasso around it and with every moment the air was being squeezed out of my being. Slowly my “discussing/protesting” faded and my whispered prayers turned to, “Help me, please”. Then….I fell asleep. (Sorry, if you were hoping for something super spiritual.)

Sun streamed through the window onto my face, awakening me to Friday. Rolling over, I reached for my bible and read: “My power works best in weakness.” Stumbling into the shower, His words resonated through my mind and heart, “For when I am weak, YOU are strong.” Stepping onto the platform Friday evening to worship, I knew that it was ONLY by His grace and power that I was there.

Where do you turn when you are facing your giants? Where do you run? Who do you run to for truth, strength, and mercy? In 2 Corinthians 12:8-10 Paul struggled with something significant enough that He wrote about it. He didn’t tell us what it was, but He did point us to the fact that all of our own ability to batten down the hatches; Strongarm difficulties; Tenaciously refuse to give in, is simply NOTHING compared to the power Christ supplies to us if we acknowledge our weakness and ask Him for help. What a joy it was to stand by His power on the platform last Friday night and proclaim who He is! Next time you are face-to-face with your personal weakness(es), will you choose to go it alone in your own strength or acknowledge your weakness and allow His power to work through you?

Until We Chat Again,
Crystal
The Plank-Eyed Girl