Saturday, November 01, 2008

Shining Through The Weaknesses

"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

Everybody has weaknesses. Areas in their life or in their personality that make them less than perfect. But while those weaknesses maybe make us less than perfect, they don't make us less of a person. God loves to use people despite their weaknesses, because it's in those moments that God's Glory really shows. Moses had a stuttering problem. God allowed Aaron to speak for Moses sometimes, but it was when Moses really spoke, that His Glory shone through. The people of Israel knew that the words that came from Moses were from God. Imagine- knowing this man who stutters and has a hard time getting word out in normal conversation. I can pretty much guarantee that when he was delivering a message from God, that his speech was perfect. God used a weakness in Moses to make Himself known even more to His people.

Gideon was afraid.

"But Lord , " Gideon asked, "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family." Judges 6:15

Yet God used Gideon in a mighty way to show how mighty He Is. God used Gideon's weaknesses of fear and weakness to slay armies and save his people from certain death.

Noah was a drunk! He took to drinking a lot, and I imagine many times while building this great big behemoth of an ark that God told him to build that he heard a lot of comments about drinking too much and being delusional. Yet God most definitely used Noah in a mighty way to continue the human race.

God can and will use each and every one of us, despite our weaknesses, and sometimes, because of our weaknesses! God can use the smallest and the weakest of us, we just need to let him. One of my weaknesses has always been that I am actually a pretty shy person. Yet, God seems to give me an infusion of boldness just when I need it. He uses me, despite my reluctance to step forward.

There are many, many other examples in the Bible of how God used people with mighty weaknesses to show His glory. And he can use each and every one of us- no matter what our weakness might be. That's a fantastic thing to think on, that God can and will still use me, despite any flaws I may think I have. May God use my weaknesses in whatever way he sees fit.

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