Sometimes, I judge people for their weaknesses. I get embarrassed for them. I feel pity for them.
Only to be reminded...that when we boast in our weaknesses, God's strength is showcased.
Vulnerability is a very scary thing. You never know how people will respond to you. You open yourself up to rejection, to humiliation... to looking like a fool in this world's viewpoint. But the thing I have been reminded of and convicted of, is that the viewpoint of God's Kingdom, is so very different from this world's, and yet I find myself adapting more to the viewpoints of the world than the Kingdom of God and as a disciple of Jesus, this is not an okay thing.
Instead, to look like a fool in the world's eye, that is in this instance, to be vulnerable, to share and boast in your weaknesses, is a privilege and an honorable act. Christ was beaten down, and humiliated
by this world we live in, many of His follower's were martyr'd and/or imprisoned, and still are to this day. So i ask the question, is Christ worth looking and feeling foolish in the eyes of the world for?!
The answer should be yes. If it is not, I suggest we pray that our mindsets be changed. I know I need to.
In the book of Philippians, Paul tells us that we will share in Jesus' sufferings...and we do by being humiliated sometimes, by being humbled, by being vulnerable, by being uncomfortable, by being weak, because through all of these things that the world views as so bad, God is glorified, and we are made stronger because all of our sudden our dependence is no longer on ourselves, or on people in this world, but on God. And that is where our dependence needs to be. on Jesus Christ.
So i challenge you, and myself included, to be vulnerable. Especially with those you trust, and those in your community. Admit to your faults. Stop lieing about how you are doing, and be honest. Confess your sins; your lust, your fears, the lies you have been believing, your bitterness and unforgiveness, the lies you have been telling, your pride, your ungodliness....
And have grace and receive grace, because God's grace is never exhausted on you. He gives and gives and gives, as should we to others.
I need prayer. I wrestle with the enemy everyday. I wrestle with fears, lust, lies of all sorts (believing and telling). Sometimes I don't have the strength to wrestle, so I give in. More than I would like to admit. I am stubborn and prideful, and I need people to fight alongside me. Just like you need people to fight alongside you. God is good. God is worthy of all of our praise, even in the struggles. Jesus has paid the price, He has gone in our place, we are already victorious and are already seated with Him in glory. Let's walk that way. Let's fight the good fight of faith, and grow in the reliance of the Holy Spirit in our lives, and grow in our knowledge of Him and our intimacy with Him.
Fight against the perspective of the world, to gain the perspective of God's Kingdom.
"Therefore confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working." James 5:16
"Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my LORD. For his sake I have uffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Crist and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith--that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death...." Philippians 3:8-10
"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 of my weaknesses so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persucutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong."
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