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.
2 Corinthians 12:9
It is easy to get down on ourselves when we feel like we are not up to the task before us. We can feel as if we lack the capability, the energy, the strength, even the knowledge to handle the situation as God calls. It may be true that we wouldn’t do well from the place that we are. However, if God called us to something, He will get us there and enable us to accomplish what He has place before us. We must allow the character and spirit of the Son of God to rise up in us and give us strength.
A person I know was struggling in an area of their spiritual life, and you could see it through their choices.They were walking in darkness even when they had access to the light. They were actively, yet blindly, tearing down everything they had worked to build. If I am honest with you, they were doing so poorly because they handled things as they saw fit and desired rather than how God in His Word instructed. I called them to the table about it. Their response was, "I am not as strong as you." They thought that excuse a sufficient enough answer not to walk in the character, will, or calling of God on their lives. As I told them back then and share with you today, God will not accept that excuse. As believers Christ is there to be our strength.
It doesn't matter how weak we are or claim to be; He is there to make up the difference. He is there to shine light in the dark area of our lives.
We must not let our rationalizations or society make us believe that living passively, thinking small, and doing the minimum is going to warrant victory in our lives. God's grace is sufficient, but He is not going to do what He has called us to do.
God knows we are not strong enough to do it ourselves; that is why He gave us His Son, His Spirit, and His word. Philippians 4:13 "For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength." God called us to holiness, growth, and maturity, and He did not do it without first giving us the means and the capability to be committed, grow, and mature as a Christian believer. So, the question becomes: Is the problem the we are weak, or is it that we have not looked to Christ to rise in our live and give us strength?
I can not tell you how many times I have a look at mandates and standards in the word of God, like 1 Cor 13 about love and how I should treat others and walked away from it feeling inadequate to the task. We will continue to face feelings of inadequacy about our ability to be the people we are called to be in Christ because we cannot achieve Christlikeness by ourselves. However, God has given us what we need to become those things. Our job is to learn them, strengthen ourselves in them, and practice and train ourselves to allow Christ to shine through us.
When an athlete wants to improve or strengthen themselves, they train and exercise themselves in that area to grow. For those who want to build their minds or their skill set, they learn and practice. Looking from the outside in, we can be in awe of their accomplishments. But we must remember they would have never reached that level of ability or excellence without effort, time, and discipline. This person's problem from earlier wasn't that they were weak. Their problem was they weren't looking to the Source to gain their strength.
Lord God helps us to see what we are capable of in You. Give us the desire, the heart, and the Spirit to work with you to become that person you have planned for us to be. Walking in victory and positively impacting the world around. Being a light to a darkened world letting them know that they to can find strength, salvation, and rest in You, In Jesus Name Amen
Exercise God's strength today.
Take the time to talk to God about your struggle. Look to Him for the encouragement, instruction, discipline, and strength to become an overcomer in that situation. Allow your faith walk muscles to strengthen and dedicate time and effort to become strong in Christ. Spend time learning and practicing so that we are prepared to handle the next thing depending on Him and assurance in the tools He has given us to use. Muscles of faith take effort to build and will not be gain passively.