The upside-down ways of God’s kingdom flash brightly in contrast to our world’s obsession with people who are exceptional. In our world where money opens doors, the famous always find the spotlight, and those with extraordinary talents or looks or abilities are very nearly worshiped, strength is elevated. Weakness is looked down upon, ignored, shamed, condemned.
Eugene Peterson calls this paradox of God’s kingdom the “Great Reversal” in Matthew 20 when Jesus’ parable teaches that “the last will be first, and the first will be last” (v.16 MSG and NIV). While we might revel in our talents or wealth or rank here in the world, God’s kingdom – in the here-and-now and for all eternity – reverses it all.
Part of our journey of embracing grace requires us to embrace weakness because of the high value God places on it. Only when we identify our weaknesses and take them to God do we open ourselves to be filled by God’s strength. In other words, God’s grace is sufficient – especially when we are not.
Untangling Our Strengths
Strengths. We have tests to identify them. We apply for jobs that play into them. We train hard to make them stronger.
Even in the Bible, we watch the disciples jockeying for position. We see them balk at Jesus’ way of going toward the weakest, His way of kneeling in front of them to wash their feet.
At the same time, we know that Holy Spirit pours spiritual gifts into all believers – and that we’re called to use them (Romans 12:6-8), to be “good stewards of the multifaceted grace of God” (1 Peter 4:10 NASB). In fact, we’re meant to “fan into flame” any gift of God in us because “God doesn’t want us to be shy with his gifts, but bold and loving and sensible” (1 Timothy 1:6 NIV and MSG).
So, what do we do with all these messages that feel a bit tangled up?
We begin by acknowledging that we have both, strengths and weaknesses. They aren’t necessarily exclusive from each other, and both can work against us and God…or for God and others. I know; it feels a bit jumbled.
We are born with abilities, and of course God wants us to use them. But part of our de-tangling is to differentiate natural abilities with gifts of the Spirit that only believers are given. Paul very clearly sets these apart, telling us they are “for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:7), to be used in the service of each other (1 Peter 4:10). These gifts are in us for good purposes, for the blessing and building up of those around us. Not ourselves. Not to increase our confidence or to bring us glory. But to bless others and glorify God!
Too often, however, we let the world’s ways and our own ambitions lead us toward the spotlight – to display our gifts for approval, applause, and advantage. We take Jesus’ teaching to “let your light shine” out of context (Matthew 5:16); for the light in us is not our strengths or our gifts – but GOD Himself!
“You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. …Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine!” Matthew 5:14-16 MSG
When we set out to use our gifts, to shine God’s light into the world, we’re meant to rely on God’s grace for all of it. We’re not called to think ‘less of ourselves’, but to think of ourselves less – to be humble before God and others, recognizing that all we have to offer in this world is God-given. We don’t have to manufacture anything, but we also don’t get the credit for what God has gifted us to use for the good of the Church and the world. And we certainly don’t want to start believing that we are a gift to God!
“Living then, as every one of you does, in pure grace, it’s important that you not misinterpret yourselves as people who are bringing this goodness to God. No, God brings it all to you.” Romans 12:3 MSG
Getting all of this straight helps us move in this world as Jesus did, understanding that when we rely on our strengths, we’re missing the mark for God. Indeed, living from our own strengths points people to us rather than God. But when we depend on His Spirit, His strength, His grace, we align ourselves with God’s heart and hope for us and the world.1
Embracing Weakness
In our celebrity-driven culture and with our own self-centered tendencies, living for the good of others seems backwards, even baffling. It was certainly difficult for the Twelve. They struggled with the desire for greatness. They frequently fell into the trap of living for their own glory, from their desire to rule over others. But Jesus set them straight, explaining to them, and us, what it looks like to ‘become great’ for Him: “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave” (Matthew 20:26-27).
Servants and slaves hold no rank, no power; they are positions of weakness. Their inner strength is seen only as weakness by the world. Loving our enemies, serving those we lead, turning the other cheek – none of these make sense to our flesh, to our desires for security and strength, fairness and fame. But in God’s economy, His power is made perfect in our weakest places (2 Corinthians 12:9).
Paul, the Apostle’s Apostle, had every reason to be proud of his strengths. He was born to the right family and studied under the most acclaimed teacher. He thrived as a Pharisee and gained great notoriety for keeping God’s law. But Paul learned what we all must – his strengths, before he laid them before Jesus, worked against God and the Church He was building (Acts 22:3-5, 19-20). Paul discovered that the pride he carried for all his accomplishments and strengths strove to elevate him above God. He believed he knew best – the oldest sin of humanity.
Running into Jesus on that Damascus road changed so much about Paul, and a big part of that transformation was unlearning his ways of relying on his strengths and, instead, aligning himself under the Lordship of Christ as His servant (Acts 9:17-22; Romans 14:8-9).
So when Paul saw the same sins of pride rising up in the churches he had planted, he laid out his own life, his own journey as an example for how to live humbly yet boldly for Jesus. He believed that a “thorn in his flesh” was given to him by God in order to keep him from becoming conceited again (2 Corinthians 12:7).
When he prayed for God to remove this ‘thorn’, God declined, responding, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (v.9a). So from that day on, Paul embraced his weaknesses, going so far as to boast and delight in them – because he knew this was how to remain open to Jesus’ power resting on him (v.9b-10a). Paul truly believed, “When I am weak, then I am strong,” because he took God at his word (v.10b).
This way of thinking may be less tangled but, perhaps, more counterintuitive. Just as Paul once did, we strive for grades and work hard to make the team; we earn extra degrees so we can gain a promotion; we rely on our natural abilities to get us through or even ahead. It’s how the world rolls.
What Paul and Jesus are trying to help us understand is that in God’s kingdom we don’t need qualifications. We don’t earn our keep. We don’t have to strive to get a spot on the team or to be top dog. As believers, we lean into the power of grace and Holy Spirit, using the gifts we’ve been given – for everyone’s benefit.
And the best way to remain open to that power is to embrace our weaknesses, remembering that this is the way God’s strength is perfected in us. In other words, “our strength is not in ourselves but in Christ.”2 This is exactly what Paul means when he says, “We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7).
When I think of my own weaknesses, I realize they come in all shapes and sources. My body has weaknesses that inhibit me from doing things I used to love – singing, dancing, teaching. I’ve certainly lamented these ‘losses’, but I’ve also grown in understanding that God can work through these weaknesses or even in spite of them. His power shows up more obviously to me now because I have less reliance on myself. Most days. 😉
The pride I inherently carry within me has always loved to rear its ugly head in various situations and with differing outcomes. In this season, I’m trying to embrace this as a weakness rather than beating myself up every time it pops up again. I certainly pray for humility, but I’m also curious what it looks like for God’s strength to shine through such holes.
I am beginning to embrace this idea of weakness as something God can and will use – for His glory and for others’ gain, perhaps even for my good (though that can feel prideful to say. LOL). But it does require me – all of us – to name our weaknesses and offer them up to God.
I suspect if we ask God, He’ll help us discern if a weakness is God-given, like Paul’s ‘thorn’, or naturally present. I believe that He’ll also lead us, by His grace, toward a full surrender of our weakness so that how He chooses to work through us will become “a demonstration of the Spirit’s power” (1 Corinthians 2:4) – so that others’ faith and hope and experiences of God will not depend on us, “but on God’s power” (v.5). So that all the ways we serve in this world point to HIM!
Grace gifts us. Grace keeps us tethered to humility. Grace gives us everything we need to live a holy life with God-given gifts and strengths – “not because of anything we have done but because of [God’s] own purpose and grace” (2 Timothy 1:9). Grace abounds even greater when we acknowledge and submit our weaknesses to our Lord, when we bow low before Him with all humility and faith, trusting that His power and strength does their best work from that very position.
May we acknowledge our tendencies to live with self-ambition and a desire to shine for self.
May we embrace our God-given strengths — and surrender them to Him at the same time.
May we be willing to name our weaknesses and see them as vessels of God’s strength and power.
May we humbly and boldly share our gifts in the Church and the world — for others’ good and God’s glory.
May we believe that God’s power is perfected in our weakest places.
Father God, “we struggle to admit it, but the truth is that we are weak and poor and needy. Thank you for being okay with this central feature of humanity. Help us to be okay with it. Even better, teach us to glory in it. We want to learn to embrace our weaknesses so that we become the kind of people through whom you can demonstrate your strengths. Come, Holy Spirit, and bring us this transformation of mind and heart.”1 In Jesus’s name we pray, amen.
Resources: I love sharing with you the books, podcasts, articles, and anything else that has inspired, encouraged, or taught me. These are humble offerings with no expectations.
- 1 – JD Walt in the 6/19/25 “Wake Up Call” unpacks all of this much more deeply.
- 2 – Quoted from this Got Questionsarticle on boasting in our weakness.
- 3 — I’m telling you Gracelaced^ by Ruth Chou Simons’ is the most beautiful book I own — in Word and art!
- I chose The Worship Initiative’s version of “Broken Vessels” for playlist, Embracing Grace. This song picks up the chorus of the most beloved hymn, “Amazing Grace” as its own chorus. The rest of the lyrics and the tune are unique but build off of the original lyrics’ intent:
You take our failure
You take our weakness
You set Your treasure
In jars of clay
So take this heart, Lord
I’ll be Your vessel
The world to see
Your love in me
Amazing grace
How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me - Each Wednesday I upload a “Teacup” teaching video that carries on the topic here. You can find all the videos on my Facebook Author Page, Instagram, and YouTube.
- Many of you have found me on Substack. Thank you so much! And, if you’d like to listen to (rather than read) these weekly posts, you can do so on Substack, as well. It’s easy to see and use the audio bar across the top of each post. While you’re on Substack, check out the ministry I’m blessed to be part of, the Devoted Collective.
- My monthly newsletter, The Abiding Life, goes to email inboxes the first week of each month to those who have subscribed on my website. I also post them on Substack. My most recent edition can be found there, and you can subscribe for future newsletters on Substack, here.
Rhythms: As my newsletter’s title infers, we seek to develop an abiding life in this space — a place where we can get informed but also be transformed as we learn to abide in God’s presence throughout our days. I like to think that developing rhythms is one way to aid us in our desire to become more Christlike. There’s nowhere better to know Christ than in His Word, so throughout this series, we’ll grab hold of one passage each week and embrace the rhythm of starting our day with God and His Word every morning.
- This week our passage is 2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV. This is such a familiar passage that it’s easy to read over it with faith yet not fully grasp what God is saying here — to and through Paul. God works best where we are weakest. Talk about counterintuitive! Living with such humility and openness and willingness requires so. much. grace!!
“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 12:9 - We’re all called to share the truths about the work of Jesus. One way you can do that is by sharing this site and telling others your own stories of faith experiences. Believe it or not, we worship God each time we share our stories of faith! We use our whole selves to tell about our holy God!!
Featured Photo by Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash. “All the Bits and Pieces” Photo by Arjun Kapoor on Unsplash.
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“The first will be last and the last will be first.”