Think about the last time you had a job interview or perhaps the last time you took a personality quiz. Different scenarios may call for different questions, but there’s always one topic that we may not really like to talk about: our weaknesses. Society tells us our weaknesses hold us back from achieving great things. They keep us from being “good enough” or cause us to be inferior to others. Sometimes the worldly view of our weaknesses can even make us feel ashamed. But here’s the good news – scripture tells us something very different.
“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.” -2 Corinthians 12:9-10
Do you find yourself boasting about your weaknesses? Do you delight in difficulties? I’m sure your answer is like mine – no! But the good news is that as followers of Jesus and because of our relationship with Him, we can.
You may wonder why we’re talking about our weaknesses when this week’s focus is becoming more gracious. Part of becoming more gracious is realizing, understanding, and accepting the grace that God has already made available to you. His power, His grace, is made perfect in our weakness. When others see Him working through us, the flawed human beings that we are, they are able to see the magnitude of His grace in a tangible way. Without His grace we will always fall short. But when we understand the grace God has granted us, that’s what fuels us and ignites us to offer the same grace to others. When we acknowledge and receive His grace, graciousness becomes natural for us.
Spend some time meditating on today’s scripture. Where may God be leading you to open up about your weaknesses so He can reveal His grace and glory? How can you shift your perspective from despising your weaknesses and difficulties to seeing them as opportunities to experience more of God’s goodness?
We’d love to hear what God reveals to you in the comments below!