Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Perseverance”
Our Bible verse for today: “Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:8-9 (NIV)
Our thought for today: “Sometimes we have to learn to live with the problem.”
The Apostle Paul had a problem he called his “thorn in the flesh”. He never really explained for us what that thorn was or in what way it tormented and limited him (many Bible scholars believe it was bad eyesight. Others speculate that Paul stuttered and was therefore a poor public speaker). All we know is that it was something that he desperately wanted to be freed from and he pleaded with the Lord in prayer to please take it away.
But God didn’t take it away. Instead, God worked through Paul’s weakness and limitations. When it became clear to Paul that the thorn would now be part of his life, he adjusted to it as best he could and got on with life under that new set of circumstances.
And get on with life he did. Despite whatever thorn in the flesh he had to deal with, Paul lived a robust life of purpose and commitment, and he ended up being the greatest evangelist and church planter in the history of Christianity. He also wrote the majority of the New Testament. Not bad for a man who by his own estimation was physically limited and weak.
I’ve always admired people who determine to live life large, to the best of their ability, despite being faced with great challenges. That certainly describes my wife Linda. Despite having suffered a major stroke and having had part of her brain removed, and despite the resulting physical and mental limitations she is now faced with, she never gives up. With her little black walker on wheels (complete with Harley Davidson stickers and flames), she scoots around like the Energizer Bunny, always involved in one thing or another, and always ready for some new challenge. She inspires all the rest of us to try harder and to complain less.
While God may not always take away a problem, He will always give us the grace to deal with it well.
Hopefully whatever problem you’re currently facing is temporary and the time is coming soon when you will overcome it. But if not, if it turns out to be long-term or even permanent, then I encourage you to do what Paul and Linda did. Make whatever adjustments to your life which are necessary, then get on with life as best you can under whatever the circumstances are. Don’t give-in and don’t give-up. Live life fully, to the best of your ability, accomplishing all that you can for as long as you can.
Sometimes we just have to learn how to live with the situation as it is.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 