My friend and I were walking.
I was beyond exhausted. Physically, mentally, emotionally.
I had a to do list that could have used a to do list.
My mind was distracted from the conversation my friend was trying to have with me.
Another step. After slow step. After slower step.
Every few minutes my phone would buzz: another email, another text, another appointment – another thing requiring my time.
I knew I needed a break, desperately. My friend knew I needed a break.
But I also knew there was very little time for one.
I kept walking.
My body ached, and I shivered in the Kentucky cold – I had been sick for days it seemed.
My knees were weak beneath my frame.
“Don’t be weak” I scolded myself, “Don’t show that anything is wrong.”
I didn’t have to. It was apparent. I was zoning out.
We stopped walking and I was confronted immediately with the very realness of my weakness.
I’ve had my fair share of weak moments in life, and I’ve always had an opposition to them.
I like to be efficient.
I like to get things done in a timely manner.
I like to stay busy.
I like to be independent.
And more often than not…
I don’t like to ask for help.
I don’t like to appear vulnerable.
I don’t like to be late
I don’t like to be sick
.
And most important: I don’t like to feel weak.
Until last week.
Have you ever felt weak?
And I don’t mean just a little tired.
I mean downright weak, spent, exhausted, done, helpless.
I have. But I have always had a stigma about weakness.
I try to respond to weakness with ignorance.
But in terms of weakness, ignorance is not bliss.
It’s simply ignorance.
But lately, God has been teaching me a whole lot about weakness.
Once again, I am left completely humbled and in awe of Him.
God has been speaking a lot to me lately through a friend of mine, and through His Word, and through my time spent alone with Him.
Last week my eyes were open to the endless possibilities tied to weakness.
Weakness, can be an amazing blessing.
If you’re anything like I was, your brow furrowed at that statement, or you experienced a “what?” moment.
Bear with me.
Weakness gives boundless opportunity for growth.
I mentioned before that I learned about weakness because of three things: friendship, the Word, and quiet time with Him. I didn’t know until later just what God was speaking to my heart in those moments.
The friend of mine has reminded me that I wasn’t created to walk through this life alone, I was made for fellowship. I have been blessed with wonderful people in my life, and part of that is to have each other to lean on and encourage each other. I’ve been reminded that it’s okay to receive help without it being selfish or burdensome. I was also thankfully reminded that we should respond to someones willingness to help with humility, patience and grace.
There are countless places in the World that speak about God’s strength through our weakness. He covers and strengthens us through every type of weakness: physical, emotional, spiritual. He created us, and He knows our innermost pieces, and He wants us to be strong – in Him. Here are just a few places I’ve read about weakness: 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Psalm 61:1-4, Isaiah 40:28-31, Isaiah 41:10.
And in my quiet time with Him either having dialogue or simply listening, He has reminded me that when I am weak and running on empty, it means that I am able to be filled. And when I am weak and running on empty, God’s power in me is magnified. For when I am weak and running on empty, it is clear that it is not my strength carrying me on, but the work of Christ in me. Weakness also causes me to slow down, and when I slow down, I am able to hear Him more in that stillness.
It is easy to become caught up in the standards of this world in all ways, but especially in terms of weakness. We are taught by the world that we should be perfect, flawless, always strong, and without problems. But that is a lie, and it is a lie that keeps us from drawing near to Christ and to others in that weakness.
Times of weakness are sure to come at times in life.
Instead of allowing it to withdraw into yourself and feel ashamed, view it as a blessing and an opportunity to further your relationship with Christ and allow Him to be magnified in you.
After being confronted with my weakness on my walk, I was processing all that I was hearing and learning and seeing. I took one more step, this time with the help my friend. And another. While I may have cried, and stumbled, and argued with my friend, myself, and God that night. I’ve now realized that each step after that moment was a step closer into my Father’s arms, and into the acceptance that weakness is able to be used by Him just like my gifts are.
Don’t let fear or weakness keep you from pressing on for His Kingdom. Keep taking the next step, even if you stumble. Strength, or weakness: He is with you, and He is for you.
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