Weakness part 4
This is the one I really like: "To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some" (1 Corinthians 9:22). And the part I really like about it is that instead of confronting someone else's weakness with strength... we are to just hunker down with them. I've been Ranting a lot about how my strength can line up with your weakness--cover you, in a sense--but sometimes we just need someone to be there with us. To understand what we're going through instead of trying to fix it all the time. Sometimes people have to go through things in order to learn from them and grow. Some things are not for us to fix. Somestime, in order to really build that bond, we need to show them that we're right there with them. Not always, "I'm up here, so since you're down there... let me pull you up." That, even with the best of intentions, can come off pretty harshly. Pretty condescendingly. If you're already going through something--feeling weak, and not in the good "weak in the knees" way--the last thing you need sometimes is for someone to shine a spotlight on it, and be like, "Oh this is easy. All you have to do is this, this, and this." That can be embarrassing, and make you feel even more weak. Make you feel stupid about your weakness. That's harsh. And, again, I don't think that's always the reason someone wants to swoop in a fix the problem. But we need to be sensitive. If someone's weak... maybe not the best time to show off how strong you are. Like kicking someone when they're down. They're already down, man. So use some judgment. Sometimes a hand up when you're down is exactly what you need. But sometimes when you're down you just want to know that you're not alone. You just want to know that it's ok to be down. For a little while. I remember a preacher talking about this subject, more or less, and saying, "When you're in the valley I'll visit with you, but I'm not building my home there." One more memory verse, "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven... a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance" (Ecclesiastes 3:1 and 4). It's ok to be weak. That's not always a problem that somebody needs to fix. But while it's ok to get down, it's not ok to stay down. There's a time to weep, and then there's a time to laugh. There has to be balance. And that's where having someone with you can help. Because even in our weakness, we are stronger together. We don't have to prove anything to anybody, but we can draw strength from each other. I don't have to fix your problem. I can commiserate with you. And then, together, maybe we can rise up. Let the weakness, the sadness, whatever it is, run it's course, and then move forward. Together. I don't always have to haul you to your feet, or drag you along behind me. I can wait until you're ready, and then we can go together. If you're feeling weak, and all you see is someone with no weaknesses (which isn't true, but might seem that way), that might do more harm than good. But if you can see that we're in this together... that's when things really work out.