By Chalcedony Williams
If I wanted to boast, I would be no fool in doing so, because I would be telling the truth. But I won’t do it, because I don’t want anyone to give me credit beyond what they can see in my life or hear in my message, even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.
Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
2 Corinthians 12:6-10
‘Enough’ - it is not an adjective we hear as frequently these days, except perhaps when we want something to stop (“I’ve had enough”). In the West, particularly in the UK and the US, we seem to be preoccupied with the excess. We want the VIP experience, the XL portion, and the ‘plus’ or ‘pro max’ phone model. To quote a famous pop musical, ‘all the shine of a thousand spotlights, all the stars we steal from the night sky will never be enough’ (Pasek & Paul, 2018)*. Enough never quite feels like enough, and even if it is, we want more. Enough feels like it might run out, and in a world where we are constantly being made to feel like everything is running out, this idea can be anxiety-inducing. Grace that is enough, sounds like it barely covers - maybe it could run out. Then what?
Perhaps looking at the synonyms for ‘enough’ will help to reframe our perception of its meaning. Enough can also mean plenty, abundance, and ample supply. Enough is not barely scraping by, enough is bountiful, plentiful, all-sufficient, all-satisfying. When we consider these words, it completely expands our understanding – even as ‘enough’ seems to supernaturally expand to cover exactly what is needed. And, of course, that makes sense when we consider the One from whom this grace is poured out.
In today’s passage, we read about Paul’s struggle with a thorn in his flesh. A “messenger from Satan” to cause him distress and torment that humbles him to the point of weakness. Paul writes that he pleaded with the Lord for this to be taken away from him. To which the Lord responds, “my grace is all you need, my power works best in weakness”. The Lord said, “my grace is enough”. He is the one supplying the strength to stand when everything else is causing you to fall. He is holding you up, sustaining you by His power. You may feel weak, you may feel on the brink of collapse, but His abundant supply of grace is filling the shortfall, stopping the gap, securing the breach. His grace is all you need to endure, to persevere, to survive every and anything the enemy may throw at you.
The Lord said, “my power works best in weakness”. His power is most powerful when we recognise that we have no power at all. It’s not that our trials take away our power, they just expose to us how frail and fragile we are. To think we can accomplish anything independently is to be deceived. Pride will not allow us to recognise our weaknesses and will, therefore, keep us from fully knowing and receiving the grace of God. But as our trials humble us before our Lord and Saviour, we get to rejoice and praise Him for His powerful grace, sustaining us and keeping us for the sake of His glory.
Ask: Why did God allow Paul to endure the thorn in the flesh?
Seek: What ‘thorns’ are you currently experiencing? Are they leading you to rely on God or something/someone else? How do our trials help us to rely on God’s grace?
Knock: Heavenly Father, thank You that ‘enough’ is all I could ever need and it never runs out. Please help me to see my weaknesses as an invitation to know more of Your powerful grace. Please humble me so that I can trust in You and be sustained and upheld by You alone. For Your name’s sake. Amen.
*Pasek, B. and Paul, J. (2018). Never Enough [lyrics]. New York: Atlantic Records. Available at: https://genius.com/Loren-allred-never-enough-lyrics [Accessed 11 January 2024].
(Upper Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash)
