Are you enjoying this cooler fall weather? I am! The 30s and 40s in the mornings lately have really helped me as I get back into running, and some recent frost has started to bring out the leaves’ color too! Sometimes it takes frosty, cold weather to bring out the bright fall foliage, and sometimes it’s when we face some cold, hard reality that God shines through the most.
The Apostle Paul asked God 3 specific times to get rid of a “thorn in the flesh,” most likely a physical difficulty such as bad eyesight. God showed Paul that He had a bigger plan, a good reason for not healing Paul and that His power would show through more effectively WITH THE WEAKNESS. I love Paul’s response in 2 Corinthians 12:10: “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.” The difficulty reminded Paul to depend on God and made God’s love and message show up even more in Paul’s life.
One of my favorite preachers is Kenny Baldwin, an energetic pastor from the Washington D.C. area who nearly died from Covid several years ago. He relied on God throughout the illness, and God healed him but chose to not allow him to regain all of his physical strength and definitely not his full volume and energy. I’ve heard it said that Covid has turned down the volume of his preaching but turned up the intensity of his message as he continues to faithfully preach. Each of us can decide to allow a setback to sideline us or remember that sometimes it takes a struggle for the best things, the most important things, to shine through even brighter.
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