Quote from Forum Archives on January 16, 2003, 7:33 pm

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

Do you ever find yourself feeling weak, perhaps even powerless,
to control whatever circumstances you're going through? At
several points in my life, I've been a power freak, wanting to be
sure that I'm right, and that I know what I'm doing. But as I've
slowly (and I mean slowly) matured, I've come to realize the real
truth of scripture when it is said that "My strength is
sufficient for you" and that "My strength is made perfect in
weakness". In fact, in today's scripture, it goes even further
than that. The apostle Paul records that God revealed to Paul
that God's grace is sufficient, and that God's strength is made
perfect in weakness.

Paul went on to say that once he realized that, he was willing to
even boast about his own weakness, so that perhaps the true power
of God would be even more fully revealed in his life. Well,
history helps us see that's exactly what ended up happening.
Paul faithfully went on journeys to spread the Gospel. He first
tried to share with his fellow Jews, but they rejected him
everywhere he went, so then he went to the Gentiles (people who
aren't Jews and don't practice Jewish customs). When he did so,
he was chased by the Jews and rejected by many of the Gentiles,
too.

But he did manage to start many of the early Christian churches,
and he wrote more New Testament scripture than anyone else,
including John, the disciple whom Jesus loved (who probably comes
in next, since he wrote the Gospel of John, three epistles, and
the book of Revelation).

How did this amazing transformation occur? Well you can read the
complete account of Paul's conversion (once called Saul) in the
book of the Acts of the Apostles. His name was first mentioned
in the transition between chapters 7 and 8, where Saul was among
those who persecuted Stephen, the great Christian martyr. A
chapter later, beginning in Chapter 9, you can read about how the
life of Saul was transformed. In chapter 13, you can read about
how Saul's name was changed to Paul, and how he worked with
Barnabus (the son of encouragement).

None of this would have happened had Paul insisted to remain the
stubborn, self righteous Saul, who condemned Christians in the
name of God!

What does this have to do with us? Each of us needs to regularly
examine ourselves, admit that we are powerless over many things
in our life, and turn to God for the answers to life's problems.
As you can read from Paul's life, that won't make life easy, it
may even complicate matters. But it will put you in tune with
God's purpose for your life, and God can change everything.
History will prove it, even if we cannot see it today.

I don't know what will come next in my life. I don't know for
sure where I will be employed, how long God will allow me to
live, what my friends and family will do, or what God will do
through me. One thing that I do know is that when I permit God
to be in charge of my life instead of continually trying to
control things myself, God performs wonders that bring meaning
and purpose to everything that I do.

Therefore, like Paul, and like the author of today's Our Daily
Bread story (which you can find on the Web at
www.gospelcom.net/rbc/odb/odb.shtml), I'm learning that my
real source of strength is when I realize that I have no strength
of my own, everything comes from God.

Your Brother in Christ,
Brian

____________________________________________________________
Our Daily Bread
January 16, 2003

The Advantage Of Weakness

Read: 2 Corinthians 12:1-10

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

Bible In One Year: Exodus 1-4

I always enjoy talking with my old college friend Tom and
getting caught up on what the Lord has been teaching us since we
last met.

One day Tom began with a sheepish grin, "You know, I can't
believe how many years it has taken me to learn my latest
lesson--and I'm a Bible teacher!" He went on to list some of the
trials and testings he and his family had been facing and how
unworthy he felt teaching an adult Sunday school class. "Week
after week I felt I was a total failure," he confided, "and kept
wondering if this might be my last Sunday before announcing my
resignation."

Then one Sunday a young woman stayed after class to speak to
Tom. She was a friend of his family, so she knew what they had
been going through. "Tom," she said, "I hope you won't take this
the wrong way, but you're a much better teacher when you're
going through tough times."

Tom smiled as he told me, "Only then did I feel that I grasped
the Lord's response to Paul's thorn in the flesh: 'My grace is
sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in
weakness'" (2 Corinthians 12:9).

When we recognize how much we need God, He will strengthen us.
That's the advantage of weakness. --Joanie Yoder

Inadequate but mighty--
How strange, yet wholly true;
Weak servants filled with power
The Lord's great work can do. --Bosch

In tough times, God teaches us to trust.

RBC Ministries is a member of the
Gospel Communications Network (GCN).

rbc@gospelcom.net
(c)2003 RBC Ministries--Grand Rapids, MI 49555

Our Daily Bread is a daily devotional provided by RBC Ministries
for spiritual growth and Bible study

=====
--
Brian Masinick, mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/

__________________________________________________
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