Weak part 1
I always say, "Meekness is not weakness, it is strength under control." Which, to me, really helps a verse like "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth" (Matthew 5:5) make a lot of sense. It's not about just laying down and letting people walk all over you. I remember one time I told my mom she was a marshmellow. And my son immediately said, "I like marshmellows!" Sometimes you have to stand for something. All the time you should stand for love. Here's what I want to talk about for the next few days though: What is weakness? And what can we do about it? And the short answers are: Not being able to do something, and letting someone (God, specifically, but generally through people) help us. I think I have a few themes in my Rants and YouTube videos. One of which is that we are all in this together. No man is an island. It's not good that man should be alone. I can't do everything. And that's ok. Because I'm not supposed to. I'm not expected to--at least not by my heavenly Father. It's when we let the expectations of other people (and ourselves) pile up on us that we feel like the weight of the world is crushing us. God doesn't want us beat down. He doesn't want us to suffer through this life. I don't even believe He wants us to merely survive this life. I believe He wants us to thrive. I believe He wants us to enjoy this gift (of eternal life) that He has given us. Why else give someone a gift, right? You don't give someone a gift and then clap your hands together, twirl your mustache, and do an evil villain laugh because you think you've set them up for failure. You give someone a gift so that they can enjoy it. So that it can bring joy into their lives. And the biggest gift you can give someone... is yourself. Your three T's (Time, Talent, Treasure). The greatest love a man can have is to lay his life down for his friends. That's what this life is for. That's what this life is all about. Giving what you've got. That's what love is. But, again, I want to talk about what we're supposed to do when what we've got isn't enough. And I always cling to verses like Matthew 10:4 in the Message Bible, "If they don't welcome you, quietly withdraw. Don't make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way." I always say, "Once you've given something all you've got, it's either enough... or it's not." So to me, that's kind of the litmus test. Give it your all. And let that be enough. Because you literally can't give any more than that. Setting boundaries, and knowing when to say when, is so important. Because you CAN'T do it all yourself. Here's the silver lining though: "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most glady therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me" (2 Corinthians 12:9). When we're weak... He is strong. When we're weak... He has the opportunity to SHOW His strength. To us, and in us, and through us, and as us. So just as we shouldn't look at meekness as weakness... in a very real sense we shouldn't look at weakness as weakness. We should look at it as an opportunity to get help. To let other people shine THEIR light into our darkness. In our weakness, He is strong. And in His strength... WE are strong!