“So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh… 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.’ …For when I am weak, then I am strong.” II Corinthians 12:7b-10 NLT

Paul begged three times to be released from the Thorn in the Flesh Humility Program and God said no. Sometimes I, too, war against the weakness in myself. But perhaps God has a plan in this, too. We all need to be reminded of our insufficiency.
On our own, we are only capable of so much. Through God’s power, however, all things are possible. Our thorn in the flesh reminds us to rely on God’s strength, and not our own.

It’s interesting that God’s answer to Paul’s request was that his power works best in weakness. As if our weakness is really a strength that hasn’t been channeled into if we are just trying to deal with it, ignore it, or rail against it. What if, instead of spending so much energy protesting, I surrendered myself to God’s use? My headaches and distractibility may limit me, but perhaps in my weakness, God’s strength can be revealed.

Some think Paul’s thorn was his failing eyesight. It was something beyond his own ability to correct and outside of God’s will to change. If it had been a form of sin or a character flaw, God would have gladly removed it. This thorn was something that was at work to enhance Paul’s character by humbling him into reliance on God’s grace.

If Bethany Hamilton hadn’t lost her arm to a shark attack, she would have been just another surfer. Whatever your thorn may be, let it remind you that God can channel his strength through you.

“And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.” Matthew 7:3-5 NLT

Jesus paints a graphic visual with this little object lesson. Imagine a guy with his eye gouged out by a wood chip standing in front of you with tweezers, saying, “Hey, need help getting that splinter out of your eye?” The idea is not only ridiculous, but disturbing. He can’t possibly see through the damaged tissue, not to mention the obstruction of the wooden fragment, to carefully remove a tiny speck from your eye! He’s simply not qualified to perform that sort of precise and delicate work.

You know the people who exemplify this kind of hypocrisy. They are so convinced of their own well-being that they feel competent to offer counsel or criticism to others. While it may be perfectly obvious to us, they are blinded to the reality of their own shortcomings or sins. They sit back in their created world of illusionary perfection and dispense opinions graciously to those they view in need.

No one is without sin. But it’s a lot easier to take advice from some who practices what they preach. The coward may teach of bravery or a liar of truth, but their messages are invalidated by the speaker’s lifestyle.

It is wise for all of us to pray with the same humility and courage as David: “Search me, O God, and know my heart… Point out anything in me that offends you…” And if you speak with the voice of experience, it is better to confess it than to risk looking like a hypocrite.

“And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless.” I Corinthians 15:14 NLT

When I was young, my family would visit my grandparents in Tennessee each year for Easter. It was always a novelty to attend their church on Easter Sunday and listen to those Southern drawls and hear, “Ya,ll come back now!” They had a large “choir” that consisted of anyone in the congregation who wanted to sit in the front of the church and sing, no practice required. They were loud and off-key as they belted out those hymns of triumph in their Southern accents, full of genuine enthusiasm and excitement for the greatest victory of all time.

Now, as an adult, there’s always something lacking to me in the restrained and organized worship of Easter morning. The unique flavor and zeal of that Southern choir will always stand out in my memory when I hear, “Up from the grave he arose, with a mighty triumph o’er his foes!” Their preacher would jump up and down behind the pulpit as he proclaimed, “Christ is RISEN!” like it had just happened that very morning.

I wish that each spring I could personally reclaim that fresh passion for the resurrection. For every tenet of our faith hangs upon it. If Christ was only a prophet who lived and died, our faith is useless. If we believe that he did, in fact, rise from the grave victorious, we have a living faith worth celebrating! Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we have freedom from sin and the hope of salvation. That’s worth jumping about.

“Look here, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.’ How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. What you ought to say is, ‘If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.’ Otherwise you are boasting about your own plans, and all such boasting is evil.” James 4:13-16 NLT

Ask any high school graduate where they plan to be in twenty years. Check back in ten or fifteen, and how many of them will be anywhere in the vicinity of where they predicted? Perhaps a few. I can certainly say that the difference between the life I planned and the life I have lived is so contrasting as to be almost humorous. And embarrassing.

Why are we so arrogant and foolish as to believe that we can create the future simply by planning it? Of course, we create the future through the decisions we make each day. But so much is outside of our control: the choices and behaviors of others, the economy, our health… The best laid plans can be derailed or destroyed in an instant.

There is value in planning. There is no reward to living irresponsibly. However, what we plan and hope for is only possible if God allows it. I had it all planned out so clearly. Then I found myself humbled, broken, and rebuilt. Now I find myself at another crossroads where decisions must be made. I don’t know what doors God will open or what his plans for the next season will be.

As we plan for tomorrow, let us plan with humility, obedience, and surrender, knowing that each day is a gift from God and it is he who controls our destiny.

“Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children.” Ephesians 5:1 NLT

“The Lord is more pleased when we do what is right and just than when we offer him sacrifices.” Proverbs 21:3 NLT

If we could truly integrate God into every aspect of our daily lives, imagine how we would be transformed. The world around us would be transformed.

It’s easy to live a godly life during a mission trip or on Sunday mornings. But it’s like the difference between following fad diets and making a healthy lifestyle change. You might achieve your goal for a little while, but before you know it the situation is slipping out of hand again. Making small, realistic adjustments is easier to maintain for the long haul and more likely to achieve lasting results.

When we invite God to participate in every detail of our lives, it brings a peace and joy that can’t be found doing it on our own. And over time we are being shaped into the likeness of Jesus. Something as small as taking the time to pray for patience and the ability to teach in a way my daughter can understand before we begin her math lesson can make all the difference in the world.

Instead of us both ending up with headaches, we can work through the lesson like a team, building both her confidence in herself and our relationship. It’s just a math lesson. But when I invite God into it, I not only honor him, but that daily challenge goes so much more smoothly!

Nothing we do is insignificant to God. He wants to be honored in every moment of our lives, from the professional to the mundane.

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” John 1:5 NLT

I hate the way Daylight Savings Time throws off my schedule, but I’ll never complain about gaining an extra hour of daylight. Sunshine makes such a difference in how I feel, physically and emotionally. If I could move to a location that enjoyed thirteen hours of sunlight a day, year round, I would.

I’ve read about “The Land of the Midnight Sun,” where the sun is continuously visible for twenty-four hours a day, for varying months depending on the proximity to the equator. It sounds wonderful! But the unfortunate flip side is the months spent in total darkness. During those months, suicide rates climb as depression prevails. The constant gloom is difficult to endure.

When I think about the way we are dependent on sunlight for Vitamin D and how vitally important it is to our physical and emotional health, I am reminded how we are dependent on Jesus for our spiritual well-being. Without Jesus, we would live the darkness of sin and human depravity, separated from God, without hope.

But the Light of the World offers us forgiveness and the promise of a better life. Because of the death and resurrection of Christ, we don’t have to live as captives to sin. We have new freedom. We don’t have to live in the darkness of despair and sin because we have access to a Light that no darkness can extinguish.

When the gloom of life’s struggles threatens to overwhelm us, we need to turn our faces to the Light.

“In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.” Psalm 5:3 NIV

There are days when my faith is solid, rock-steady, and powerful enough to move mountains. I can remember with ease the times God has provided and blessed. Other days, my brain says that God will provide but I can’t bring my wayward emotions into line.

I wake up in the morning and lay my requests before him. But the uneasiness isn’t replaced with peace. I feel discontentment and longing. Just recently God answered my prayers in a mighty way and I was awed by his goodness. Why do I now feel the shadow of doubt creeping into my thoughts?

In John 15:7 Jesus says, “If you remain in me, and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given to you.” When we are aligned with Jesus, we won’t ask for anything outside of God’s will. He’s not a genie in a lamp waiting to grant three wishes. He wants us to know his character and grow in our faith.

So I am sifting my words as I pray, aligning my requests with his will. And I have confidence that he will provide in his own way and time… just make me wait longer than I’d like, and in a way that is outside of my small comfort zone.

Perhaps those very needs that weigh on my mind are blessings in disguise. They keep me coming back every morning to lay my requests before God. Every need is an opportunity for him to grow my faith.