Self-Sufficient part 4
This is the one I really wanted to get to. The one that I (think I) used when I preached this sermon lo those many years ago. "And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me" (2 Corinthians 12:7-9). Sometimes we get a little big for our britches. We think we've got a handle on things and we can do it ourselves. But not only is that not how it is... that's not how it's supposed to be. We're not supposed to do it all on our own. No man is an island. We're all in this together. We need each other. Our self-sufficiency comes in KNOWING that we need each other... and knowing that we have what we need in order to CONNECT with each other. We have love. We have mercy. Forgivness. Grace. Jesus said His grace is sufficient for us. Be HE is our sufficiency. We have everything we need... because we have HIM. I still maintain that the Beatles said it best: Love is all you need. All you need is love. Love is what makes the world go 'round. To live is to love and to love is to live. You can't have one without the other and you can't do one without the other. They aren't just connected. They are the same thing. So when we think we can't handle what life has to throw at us... instead of asking God to get rid of some of it, we need to trust that HE is ready, willing, and able to handle it for us, and with us, and through us, and as us. We don't always need to "escape" from things. Sometimes we do. I'm not saying that there are things we shouldn't escape from, or remove ourselves from. But sometimes we go through things because we NEED to go through them. To learn and grow. To prove to ourselves what we are capable of. And here's how it works: People will help us through things. And that's how we will learn to help others through things. Pay it forward, right? Once you know it, you can throw it. Once you know better, you can do better. I strongly believe that you have to do things wrong before you can do them right. Again, learning and growing. So don't think of being self-sufficient as only and always doing things by yourself. Think of it as having everything you need in order to experience this life to the fullest. Jesus's grace is sufficient for us. Everything He is is everything we need. And everything we have. Love is the only thing that can truly connect us to each other. And that connection, that relationship, is what life is all about. We have everything we need, not because nothing is ever "wrong," or challenging, but because we have God. Jesus. Love. Because we have each other. We can't do it all ourselves. And that's ok. Because we're not supposed to. It's not good for man to be alone. Love binds us together. Sometimes His grace comes in the form of a friend. Or a family member. Or a stranger. People loving people and all of us helping each other to make it through!