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REFLECTION
“Grace and weakness” is the theme for our reflection. Grace is God’s unmerited favour, mercy or goodness upon us. Weakness means to be physically fragile or feeble, usually, as a result of injury or sickness. We are going to reflect on the following facts:
1. Human beings including believers are bound to experience weakness in their bodies.
2 By the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, a believer is able to receive the power to overcome his or her weakness.

Firstly, it is important for believers to understand that we are not immune to bodily weakness. It is an inevitable phenomenon. Paul confessed to the Corinthians “I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. (2 Corinthians 12:7-8) We are not told the exact medical condition which was a thorn in his flesh but it caused him great discomfort and pain. One would be a bit surprised to learn that this thorn, sickness or temptation Paul experienced was seen as a messenger of Satan, to torment him. The word Satan must be understood as an accuser or opponent. In the Book of Job, Job experienced a series of calamities in his life and ultimately was left with bodily weakness and sours. Unknown to Job this was an act of God’s divine will to allow Satan to torment him to test His faithfulness, reverence and humility to God. “Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. 5 But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.” 6 And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand; only spare his life.” 7 So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and struck Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.” (Job 2:4-7) Job’s experience kept him humble before the Lord, “In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing” (Job 1:22) Similarly, we see Paul also humbled by the thorn in his flesh when he said, “In order to keep me from becoming conceited(humbled), I was given a thorn in my flesh” (2 Corinthians 12:7). Dear friend, the Christian life is not only about having a problem-free life. Sometimes God deliberately allows us to experience the attacks of Satan in the form of thorns of sicknesses and accidents which causes our bodies to become weak or suffer some form of disability. It does not matter how prayerful and faithful you have been all your life to God and it does not matter how frequently you have been studying and obeying the Bible, you may be the one to suffer the thorn of cancer, diabetes, hypertension, kidney failure or a medical condition you never anticipated. What will you do if you find out that you have one of these thorns in your flesh which is the course of your weakness? Will you stop worshipping God? Or would you rather listen to Job’s wife’s advice when she said to Job ““Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!” ¹⁰ He(Job) replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said. (Job 2:9-10). Jesus during his suffering, has taught us to say ““Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” (Luke 22:42) Dear friend, what is your attitude when you experience a thorn in your flesh and this thorn is giving you so much pain and discomfort? Do you start roaming from one place to the other looking for God when our faith gives us the assurance hope and confidence that we are not alone? Many Christians or believers spend their money, time and resources to further add more frustration to their problems by roaming from one prayer camp to the other looking for a solution to that thorn in their flesh without personally drawing closer to God in prayer to seek His will even in such situations of discomfort. We must understand that to even endure the weakness and the pain caused by the thorn in our flesh is by grace.

Secondly, by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, a believer is able to receive the power to overcome his or her weakness. Paul explained to the Corinthians, “Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. ⁹ 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. ¹⁰ For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:8-10) This is the mystery of Jesus’ grace in the life of believers. It is possible for a person who is weak as a result of a medical condition to experience the grace of God through contentment and power but someone who may be medically fit may not experience such grace and power. In other words, the thorns in our flesh or bodies can not limit us from enjoying the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Indeed our testimonies are most impactful and fulfilling when we experience the grace of God in the most precarious situations of our lives. When the woman with the issue of blood for twelve years touched Jesus’ garment, she was made strong in her weakness. After many years of experiencing a thorn in her flesh, the healing grace of Jesus was sufficient for her and she experienced the power of Christ rest upon her. (Luke 8:43-48). We are being invited by Jesus in our weakness and brokenness not to give up but to pray and believe that “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9). Beloved in the Lord, we have no reason to give excuses, let us boast of His mighty works in our lives and continue to serve Him even in our diabetic, hypertensive, stroke and any other condition in which we find ourselves. Let us say again with Paul that “I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

In summary, we meditated on the theme “Grace and weakness.” We have discovered that human beings including all believers are bound to experience weakness in their bodies. Again, by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, a believer is able to receive the power to overcome his or her weakness.

PRAYER
1. Dear friend, let us pray for the grace to endure weaknesses and the thorns in our flesh caused by medical conditions and ailments we have no control over.
2. Let us pray for grace to remain prayerful and faithful to God even in our weaknesses.
3. Let us pray for the healing and restoration of those who are sick in our family and in our societies.

Dear Lord Jesus, we thank you that even in our weakness Your grace is sufficient for us and Your power is made perfect in our weakness. Amen.