Devotional 98-08-12 - Sufficiency of God's Grace

Encore from 96-05-15

2 Cor 12:7 To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me 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. 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 about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. ¹⁰ 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. (NIV)

So that Paul would not forget this, God gave him a constant reminder of his weakness. Rather than removing the problem God gave him grace in it. This grace is sufficient (arkei, i.e., adequate in the sense of providing contentment). (The Greek word translates: "to keep me from becoming conceited"), The Bible Knowledge Commentary

Has God given you a constant reminder of your weakness? Is there a problem that constantly bothers you? Our God gives us a daily supply of grace. To seek this grace, we need to spend time each day with our Lord, time in prayer, meditation, Bible study, and other spiritual disciplines that help us receive our daily portion of grace.

I am reminded of the people of Israel wandering in the desert. They were hungry for food and our God provided the manna for them.

Deut 8:3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.(NIV)

Each day the people had to gather their supply of manna. Each man, woman and child had to gather their own manna. The manna would spoil over night and had to be gathered again the next day. We must gather manna (grace) everyday from our Father in heaven, who readily gives us our daily portion.

The Lord humbles us to prevent us from drawing away from Him. He wants his children at His side everyday. The Lord wants to show you how wonderful He is. Isn't an awesome thought that He cares this much about us? Isn't it wonderful that when we are at our weakest, HE is at His strongest!

Now, go and get you manna for the day, experience the daily supply of grace that our Lord has carefully proportioned out for you today.

Father I pray you will give an extra measure of grace today to our brothers and sisters in Christ who are in need of an extra portion due to the hardships of this life. Lord, thank you for humbling me constantly, so that I may not fall away from your awesome grace, thank you Lord for showing me everyday that you are in control. Thank you Lord for showing me ALL begins and ends with you. Father, I thank you and praise you for being at your strongest, when I am at my weakest. You are an awesome God! I pray these things in Jesus' precious name, Amen.

David