“Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn’t get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn’t think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me,
“My grace is enough; it’s all you need.
My strength comes into its own in your weakness.
“Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.” ~ 2 Corinthians 12:7-10, MSG
The Painful Place is Where We Find Jesus
Lord, I don’t enjoy my painful places, those thorns that cause my heart to bleed and my mind to grow restless. I yearn for some green pastures and quiet waters.
I yearn for You.
And that is precisely why there are thorns, isn’t it?
The broken places cause me to cry out to You. The painful places cause me to press into You.
The flood of tears creates the rainbow as the light of Your glorious presence shines through.
Lord, when I come to the end of myself, You are waiting. And that’s when You show Yourself strong. That’s when You teach me of Your tender watchcare.
I’ve never thanked You for my thorns. It’s easy to thank You for the roses — those beautiful, happy places. But the thorns? Not so much.
Your Word clearly tells us to be thankful in ALL things because this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for us.
All things.
Even the thorns.
Even the painful places.
We Are to Be Thankful in All Things, Even the Painful Places
Forgive me, Lord, for taking my eyes off You and not remembering Your sovereignty.
Forgive me for forgetting Your promise to work all things together for my good — even the messy, ugly, difficult places.
You promised You would, Lord.
And I trust You.
So I give You praise for the painful places in my life because they have led me straight to You. And nothing is better than You.
In Jesus’s Name I pray,
Amen
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Please don’t carry your burdens alone. I would be honored to pray for you. You may contact me directly at nan@nanjones.com
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Thank you so much for stopping by. I would love for you to share what’s on your heart in the comments below. Scroll a little farther down and you’ll see where you can leave your comments. Together, we can find the nearness of God in our darkest moments.
Sweet blessings to you,
