Thorn

“To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, 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." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.” 2 Corinthians 12:7-9 (New International Version)

I used to read this verse with clouded eyes thinking that Paul being a great man of God is often a victim of sin. True, he has a great calling as an Apostle but like many greats in the bible, they have their fair share of problems.

In my reading of the “Purpose Driven Life” Devotion, I was corrected of my understanding of this verse. The thorn is not referring to a sin or vice or character defect, but rather, it is referring to a weakness; something that you have inherited or have no power to change. It can be physical, emotional or an intellectual limitation.

From the above verse, we know that God has given Paul great revelations, but God has also allowed a thorn in Paul’s life to keep him aware of his limitations. God uses weak people, so that the glory is not theirs but rather God. If man can already glory in themselves then in reality there is then no need for a God.

In this current journey that I am walking, I often share with my wife that in just short 2 years, how much of our lives have changed. Many things have changed for the better but we do get tired of the times that we are concern of the finances. In learning to trust God this season, we have come to a stage where we know we do not have control. We often caught ourselves thinking, if we have chose to stick to our jobs; things would definitely be financially rosier. However, we are also aware of the many other blessing (Family, friends, gifts that are within us etc) that God has placed in our life, or we have come to be aware of when we are in need and we are determined to carry on this journey.

I guess at this juncture, the key thing is to be totally honest of our situation and not seem to be showing that “We have got it all together”. A work of tapering away my self-dependence has taken place and for God to use me in His plans ahead, some of my weaknesses have to be dealt with early on. Definitely, one of the most important lessons to learn is to know that His grace is sufficient for me and His power can only be made perfect in my weakness.

A lesson to be learnt experientially.