Weakness is a strength

Darlene was a stretch. Her husband left her. Four of her six boys had moved out too, leaving her with two rowdy preschoolers. When I met her, those boys were dismantling the house trying to get some attention. Their mother was unable to work, had little skill with money, her welfare money didn’t stretch far enough, and she was selling her furniture.

Befriending her was a stretch too. Taking care of her boys while she recovered from a beating inflicted by the oldest son was a full-time challenge. Taking her shopping opened my eyes. That troubled family lived on potato chips and sugar.

Nevertheless, God had a plan. One Sunday one of our boys was not feeling well so I stayed home with him while the others went to church. He was occupied with television so I called Darlene. I’d been practicing a gospel presentation and the Holy Spirit seemed to be prodding me to share it with her. I did. My practice was flawless, but I really flubbed doing it for real. It was awful. I mixed things up, forgot important points, and wondered if any of it made sense.

Darlene accepted Christ that day, to my utter astonishment. She later told me what part of what I said had got through to her. After that, we watched her life change. We saw her experience the utter joy of knowing Him, and gradually begin to make better decisions. She eventually married someone who adored her and her family. Even though we later lost touch, I often think of her, especially when I see a vehicle like the one she drove. It was from her that God showed me how His strength is “made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

This spiritual truth is a comfort to those who feel inadequate, but a challenge to the talented. I used to win every debate in high school and came into the kingdom of God thinking that I could talk others into believing the same as I did. God had to teach me otherwise.

A silver tongue or a sharp intellect might be an asset in some situations, but when sharing Christ with others, it is a hindrance. Some people can be persuaded with rhetoric, but to what end? If they agree, it does not mean that they believe. God had to teach me this too.

One lesson happened about the same time that I knew Darlene. I was on a team with two others. They were teaching me how to share my faith and we put those lessons into practice by visiting people who had visited our church.

One evening we were doing this, and the only person at a home was a teenage girl. We talked with her and she readily agreed with all that was said. She seemed ready to become a Christian and I was excited. Then, to my dismay, the two men on my team proceeded to talk her out of it. Again, she began agreeing with their negative comments and easily became persuaded to not become a Christian.

They told me afterward that human reasoning and persuasion do not produce genuine believers. If someone can be talked into “faith” they can also be talked out of it. True faith happens because of God’s power, not ours. I was dumbfounded, but never forgot that dramatic lesson.

Today’s devotional verses vividly bring back thoughts of Darlene and that evening where God showed me the danger of being eloquent or persuasive.

And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. (1 Corinthians 2:1-5)

In the devotional comments that went with this passage, the writer says that everyone has an image of Jesus Christ, but the one image that surpasses all the rest is Jesus Christ on the cross. To know Christ crucified is to know Him as the author and finisher of my faith and is the truest picture of His Person and work.

This seems fitting. If in His greatest weakness God used Him to do His greatest work, then it makes sense this also should be true for His followers. Jesus didn’t save me by a great act of verbal persuasion, but by yielding Himself to whatever God wanted to do with Him. God spoke to the whole world through a broken body, not a silver tongue.

Christ’s suffering on the cross is the focal point of the Christian faith and where His deity, humanity, work, and suffering are most clearly seen. Because of that, I don’t need to be anxious wondering if I am up to the task of sharing my faith. If I thought I was, I would not be!

Instead, His strength is perfected in weakness. Feeling weak and helpless is not a bad thing, and I must not let it sidetrack me from remembering where true power comes from. God wants me to humbly obey Him, just doing whatever He asks regardless of how I feel.