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 of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. – 2 Corinthians 12:9
It’s almost comical how often I attempt life in my own limited strength when I have resurrection power available to me. The issue is that I want power or strength so that I don’t have to face difficult things. I want the power to be able to just plow through a challenge rather than the strength God gives to bear up under a challenging situation.
God is the source of all power, yet Jesus’s greatest victory was won through physical weakness. Resurrection power happened only after death. It was within the constrains of human weakness that God revealed His power in the most significant way.
I shoudn’t be surprised that God will work the same way in my life. He uses my human weakness to display His power and to lovingly cause me to depend upon His strength alone. I can’t expect resurrection power without there first being a death. In my case, it’s a thousand deaths to sinful and selfish desires on a daily basis as God continues to strip away self-effort and pride from my life.
But, when I humbly lean into Him in times when my strength is insufficient, I find Him to be more than sufficient. He is renewing me day-by-day so that my inner man is becoming more and more like Christ even while my physical body is decaying. One day, I will experience the totality of His resurrection power when He transforms this lowly body into one like Jesus’ glorious body! Praise Him!
So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. – 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
PRAISE: Praise the Lord for His unmatched, inexhaustible power.
THANKSGIVING: Thank God for giving you the ability to fight sin and unbelief with the same power that He used to raise Jesus Christ from the dead.
CONFESSION: Ask God to reveal instances in which you have relied on your own strength to obey Him instead of the power He freely gives. Ask God to show you His incredible strength through your weakness.
FURTHER STUDY: Breathe in God’s truth about His power and respond to Him in prayer based on what His Spirit reveals to you through His Word.
Ephesians 3:14-21; 1 John 4:4; 1 Corinthians 1:26-31; Isaiah 40:28; Psalm 105; Psalm 28:7
Additional Resources
The following printable resources are taken from the 30 Days of Thanksgiving devotional available from Amazon. You’ll also find daily gratitude journaling resources below which are taken from the Every Good Gift journal also available from Amazon.