February 15
Weak Enough for Grace
by Barbara Rainey 2 Corinthians 12:9
My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.
In a previous devotion I describe the way God enabled me to accept His will when He decided to add a sixth child to our brood. Here I want to describe how I learned through that experience to be more tolerant of my humanity. I discovered that I often want-and expect-instant maturity. I often forget that I'm only human, and that it's just that kind of human weakness that God's grace is designed for.
It's little wonder that in our humanity it can be hard to see God's will for our lives. His plan for us is much like a quilt. There is an overall pattern or design made up of hundreds of pieces. Since we lack God's overall perspective, it shouldn't surprise us to wonder what this or that dark-colored piece is doing in the quilt.
Sometimes the marriage relationship becomes one of those pieces whose place in the larger pattern is hard to see. Even the most intimate couples often find that it can take time to work out areas of disagreement. We should not expect less in our relationship with our heavenly Father. Becoming conformed to His will takes time; it's a process.
Yet, by faith I affirm that God is the Creative Designer of my life. He sees an award-winning masterpiece. With that trust, I can rely on His plan, knowing that His grace gives me time to conform to His will when the pieces I see are not of my choosing.
Prayer: For confidence in God, knowing the overall pattern of your life will give you rest to quiet the questions you have about individual pieces. Thank Him that He gives us grace that is greater than our struggles.
Discuss: Talk about ways you've seen each other grow in the past five years. Then share what you think God is doing in your life today.
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