 It is commonly believed that strength is good while weakness is bad. So we promote strength in everything. We seek to elect strong personalities; we want a strong economy, a strong military, a strong government to fix our problems. The stronger the better. But this maxim is not really true. Strength can lead to pride, which leads to a downfall and failure, due to a lack of faith in God. The apostle Paul discovered this when he said, “There was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (II Corinthians 12:7-9). Paul said this was to, “keep me from becoming conceited” (II Corinthians 12:7). God intentionally kept Paul in some way weak, which worked to keep him more faithful, which Paul understood to be a good thing. He said, “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me” (II Corinthians 12:9). Recall that Jesus began his first sermon saying, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:3-5). Jesus needs us to be humble in order to remold us. The truth is, “when I am weak, then I am strong” (II Corinthians 12:10). Rick Cunningham
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