Martha Olawale

"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." 2 Corinthians 12:9

There are days I could run a thousand miles mentally, but there are also those days I take a long pause because I can't even move a limb. Today, the paths I could see clearly yesterday are cloudy, and all I can feel are walls boxing me into a corner. My strength from the dawn of the day becomes weakness from the night's somber clouds, and I just want to sit and rest on my Lord's shoulders.

Paul's encounter with Christ is one of the most convicting stories in the Bible. He got to see Jesus after His ascension despite his devotion to persecuting the Church. He later became a champion of grace and redemption for the Church. However, even he experienced what it's like to reach a limit and bow to the need to acknowledge weakness. He said in verse 6 of 2 Corinthians 12, "Even if I chose to boast, I would not be a fool because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say."

Sometimes, the road before us becomes a maze where our humanity wrestles with God's divinity. We take the bundle of life's strain from God's hands, believing we can carry the weight alone. In turn, we exert so much pressure on our little hearts instead of entrusting all the burdens to the only one who can bear them. God permits weakness because He does not withhold His grace, regardless of our shortcomings. Like a child in her mother's hand, we sometimes need to close our eyes, sleep on the Father's shoulder, and allow Him to perfect His strength through our weakness.

Even when everything in our bubble seems to be going the right way, the brokenness of our world can overwhelm our view of Heaven. The daily calls to duty in our homes, work, and life can take a toll on us and leave us scrapping from yesterday's grace. And the need to align sustaining our earthly demands with the desire to see everyone come to the knowledge of Christ can become daunting. But, like Paul, we can declare, "For Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:10.

As Christians, we don't have to feign perfection because our paths are paved with grace; we only need to dwell under the shadow of God’s wings as we grow in Him. Although navigating between Heaven's and Earth's borders is intricate, God does not want us to stay on the shores. He wants us to live beyond the edge to walk others through Heaven's gate, despite our limitations. He is not appalled by our weaknesses and will carry us before our feet give way.