It has taken me 51 years, but I am starting to get it. Our real ability to change the world, to transform the lives of others, to live a full and purposeful life comes through weakness. Consider a few of the things God tells us about our weaknesses.
- "If I must boast, I will boast in the things that show my weakness" (2 Cor. 11:30).
- "For my power is made perfect in weakness. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Cor. 12:9, 10).
- "These who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength..." (Heb. 13:33, 34).
The answer, I was being shaped, formed and perfected in weakness. Now I share my broken past with others who are hurting. I am open about the sins of my past and failures of the present. I am no longer ashamed that I am weak, imperfect or flawed. In fact I glory in all the warts and blemishes of my twisted personality. I glory in these things because I am not alone. If I can hold my head up tall and say, my life has been really messed up in places, but God loved me through it - others gain hope in my weakness.
God's treasures are in jars of clay because we can relate to them. I know - I am a cracked pot that often can't hold water, but God still trusts me to be His ambassador of hope. He uses my weakness, teaches through my failures and inspires others through the tragedies of my life. I haven't always enjoyed the path my life has taken, but God still finds a way to use it to his glory.
2 comments:
Thanks Trent... I really needed to hear that right now.
Jeanette ..your lesson made me this article that I have in my files.
Cracked Pots
An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck.
One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.
For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water.
Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments.
But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.
After 2 years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream.
"I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house."
The old woman smiled, "Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?
"That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them."
"For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house."
Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding.
You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.
So, to all of my crackpot friends, have a great day and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the path.
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