His Grace is Sufficent

The last few months have been tough.  I have been extremely sick, and we have been searching diligently for answers from several different doctors.  I have pleaded with God to make me better. 

One day I was talking to my cousin, and he told me that I should read 2 Corinthians 12:7-10.  When I opened up my Bible that night for my devotions I turned to that passage, and this is what I read (starting at verse 9):

"But the Lord 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." 

This was written by the apostle Paul when he was going through a hard time, but when I read it, I was struck by how much this passage related to me.  Ever since that night, this passage is what I grasp onto when I am feeling discouraged, when I am having pain, or when I don't even feel like fighting anymore.  

When Paul says in Romans 8:28 that "all things work together for the good of those who love God", I realize that He was not saying that everything that happens to me will be good.  In fact, God says that we will have trouble in this world (John 16:33).  But, Paul was saying in Romans that God can take my weakness and use it to demonstrate His power.

God gives me reassurance of His great grace, which is sufficient for my needs!  He reminds me through His word that "His power will be made perfect in my weakness."  Isn't God such a good, good Father???

So, I pray that I can delight in my weakness, because I know that God can transform bad into good, because I know that God's grace is sufficient for my needs, and because I know that when I am weak (literally), then I am strong.  I am strong through Christ.