WHEN YOU ARE WEAK...I AM STRONG

I feel like I need to share this letter that I wrote to my son with all my other talented 'adopted' kids out there, as well as all my talented friends and family members whose faith has carried them this far! "Fear not!!!! Only be strong and courageous for the Lord your God will be with you WHEREVER you go!" (Joshua 6)

Christian,

The apostle Paul, one of the greatest men in our Christian history and present, had a physical ailment. Some documents say it was a bad limp. Some say it was a different physical handicap. It is fact. Whatever it was, Paul prayed to God many, many, times to take it away. He cried. He told God I am doing all I can for you and the Kingdom, I am living my life as you want, or at least trying to, I am willing to let go of whatever you tell me to...just please heal me and take this problem away and make me into what I want to be. I believe in you. I love you. I acknowledge you. I go to church. I serve you. I even give up worldly things that seem fun, for you. I am sure he prayed and asked God in a thousand ways to heal him.

Yet, God's reply is one of the greatest replies in the Bible, in my humble opinion. God told him, in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, as He was also telling us when we cannot seem to understand why things are a certain way, "My GRACE is sufficient for you. For when YOU are weak. I am STRONG." My grace is sufficient for you...for when you are weak I am strong. Wow. Try it like this. Christian, MY grace is sufficient for you. My grace is all you need. My grace is enough to cover you, deliver you, and make you successful in spite of what you think is your handicap in this situation. For when you are weak, Christian...when you feel like you cannot do it, or be it, or achieve it, I CAN...I AM STRONG...I AM God. I can handle it. I can do it. I can overcome your limitation and make you victorious. I can overcome the negative voices even when they are only in your own mind. I can, and I will, make you strong enough for whatever situation you are in because my GRACE is all you need!

Do you know what GRACE is? GRACE is GOD'S UNMERITED FAVOR. Unmerited. That means favor that you don't deserve...but favor that GOD has CHOSEN to give YOU because in HIS plans for this earth HE has a REASON why HE needs you to be lifted up and SERVE HIM. Simply put, GOD HAS CHOSEN TO GIVE YOU FAVOR AND NOBODY ELSE CAN MESS WITH WHAT GOD WANTS TO ACHIEVE BECAUSE IT AIN'T ABOUT YOU, OR ANYBODY ELSE, IT'S ABOUT WHAT HE IS TRYING TO DO. It's about HIS WILL.

As God goes on to speak in this scripture, what He is trying to explain to Paul, and to us, is that if He allowed us to be perfect and without ANY limitations perhaps we would become to prideful. And, as the Bible says Pride is a nasty thing and pride goes before a fall. Perhaps we would think it's all about us. Or perhaps you'd think that you are the man, you made it happen, you can do it without anybody...eventually that thinking would lead you to actions which would have you acting as if you could do it without even God. When God loves you and calls you His own, He will never allow you to be in a place where you get so puffed up with pride, that He lets go and allows you to fall, by THINKING for even five seconds, that you can do it on your own. What He does instead is leave us with a challenge, a handicap, something that keeps us from being perfect in our flesh. He does this so that we NEED him to cover us. Provide for us. What He does is let us know that HE is the MAN. He is God. He is our strength. And, if we will just TRUST Him and proceed in the direction of our dreams, through the doors He opens for us, we can find confidence and courage and skill and strength in spite of what the world, or ourselves, see as a 'handicap.' And, armed with his GRACE He will be strong in us... and we will always win!

So, as the word says, 'count it all joy when you suffer trials and tribulations' for God is working out our faith. He is forcing us to call on Him so that He can love us and be our strength. For as He says, His grace is more than sufficient. Because when we are weak. HE IS STRONG. I have learned to thank God for my weaknesses...and to thank Him even more for the fact that I KNOW and BELIEVE that I can be weak, and it doesn't matter, because when I am weak this is when God can get busy and show up, and show off, and BE STRONG. EXPECT Him to be STRONG son. EXPECT Him to show up and show off in your life. Be HAPPY with what you think is a limitation or a handicap. Be happy with what you think makes you not as attractive as you want to be, or not as smart as you want to be, or not as whatever as you think you need to be. Be happy because God has promised you that HIS GRACE, not mom's grace or Roger's grace, or grandmas grace, but HIS grace is sufficient, meaning just enough, perfect, completely adequate and right on time! And, with that grace YOU ARE STRONG BECAUSE HE IS STRONG FOR YOU!!! And, what God has blessed nobody else can curse.

My son, my champion from birth, my joy, my life, my everything...when you are weak God is strong. And you have already won. Everything that will be yours will be yours. Nobody can stop that. God's resume is more than enough. Somewhere in His resume of what he has done while working for Christian Garrett His grace has been more than sufficient and in your weaknesses He has shown you to be strong!!!!

Hallelujah!

I Love You,

Mom

"However, as it is written: No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him"

1 Corinthians 2:9