Mindy's Blog


 

Powering Down 

By Mindy Caliguire - Thursday, February 28, 2008

Power. We all need it, we all use it. And to some degree, we all have it. Personal power, girl power, star power. Knowledge is power. Position is power. God is power. We talk about the power of the gospel, the power of the cross, the power of prayer.

Ephesians chapter one affirms that the very same power that started Jesus’ dead heart beating and sent brain waves through his silent skull is available for us today. Throughout history, God’s people have journeyed into the darkest needs of the world by the tailwind of that very real power. Mountains have been moved.

And yet many remain, so we look for more power.

One of my favorite contrarian realities of the Christian faith is the inverse relationship between human power and the power of God. In Powers, Weakness, and the Tabernacling of God, Marva Dawn explores this relationship through a careful study of Paul’s words to us in 2 Corinthians 12:9. I recommend you read her book to understand her thesis about our common mis-understanding of the truth stated by God to Paul in response to his weakness. Dawn suggests a truer rendering of this beloved text would convey this idea: “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is brought to its end (or to its limit) in weakness”.

Might it be that only our weaknesses bring us to the point of being able to receive God’s power?

Gerald May writes this: “There is a relentless willfulness in us that seldom ceases until we have been brought to our knees by incapacity and failure.” (The Dark Night of the Soul, p 86)

Only then can we even imagine honestly echoing the Apostle Paul’s radical words: “Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest (=tabernacle!!) on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight (can you imagine?!?!) in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Cor. 12: 9-10)

Where does that hit you today? What difficulties are you in the middle of? What weakness has been exposed in you lately? What hardship are you facing? Have you been persecuted? Insulted? Have you been brought to your knees by incapacity and failure? If so, gain the hope of the tabernacling presence of the Powerful One. The Loving One. The One who is very much alive.

    “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom

    or the strong boast of their strength

    or the rich boast of their riches,

    but let those who boast boast about this:

    that they understand and know me,

    that I am the Lord,

    who exercises kindness, justice, and righteousness on earth,

    for in these I delight.” Jeremiah 9:23-24
Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Permalink