His Grace Is Sufficient

On Sunday evening in my Bible Study class this week, we talked about exhortation (strongly urging or warning our Christian brothers and sisters about sin in their lives in a loving way; see Galatians 6:1-2). We examined how David sinned with Bathsheba and Nathan the prophet confronted him about it in 2 Samuel 11-12. As we were talking about how we should exhort our brothers and sisters in Christ, I recognized that I needed to be investing more in my relationship with my roommate we would know each other well enough to be able to notice when something is wrong.

That night when I got back to our dorm room, we sat down and talked for a good while. I asked him how he was doing, and tried to see if there was something going on in his life spiritually that I could help him with. The conversation ended up turning back to me, and I discovered a huge roadblock in my life. It has been keeping me from being effective for God's Kingdom, and I hadn't even recognized that it existed.

Basically, I set really high expectations for myself in a lot of areas this semester: in ministry, in my walk with God, and in my relationships, among other things. Then, when I wasn't able to follow through with those expectations, I felt like I had failed. What actually happened is that I have been trying to do things on my own. I have been trying, in my own effort and strength to do what I thought needed to be done. I haven't trusting in God to work through me or show me how to act. I have just been planning what I thought I should do and then NOT doing it, because guess what, I'm not perfect!

I was telling another friend about this tonight, and he pointed me to 2 Corinthians 12:7-10:

To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

My wise friend explained to me something I already knew but really needed to hear. I'm not perfect, and I can't do everything on my own. I was never meant to, and every time I try on my own, I will fail. God intended for me to fail. God wants me to recognize my weakness and depend on Him, so that His power may be displayed, not my meager human effort.

"It does not therefore depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy" -Romans 9:16

"Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you trying to attain your goal by human effort?" -Galatians 3:3

I have been acting like the foolish man who built his house on the sand. I have been basing everything on my own effort, which of course fails every time, so I've gotten burned out. What I need now is to learn how to stand in Christ. I need to learn to let His power and His strength fill me and allow Him to work through me, rather than trying to do things on my own.

God, help me to learn to trust in you and depend on you. Take away all my self-sufficiency and let me rely solely on you. I know that if I take things into my own hands, I will fail every time. So help me to place my trust in you, because I know that you never fail.