Since Jesus saved me, He has been saying these words to me: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). Now on this journey of faith, I haven’t ever really grasped the deepness of these words. Because if I had, I’d understand that wrapped up in this short truth statement is eternal protection and hope and at the core of Jesus’ words is the power of redemption. Now don’t get me wrong, over the years I’ve tried my best to walk these words out, but until recently (by God’s grace) I’ve come to realize that for the most part, I’ve been clueless. It’s funny, you’d think I’d be upset or disappointed, but I actually feel encouraged. Maybe its because I am finally understanding that 1) it’s not up to me to clear the path before me, but only to trust that Jesus is ever before me paving the way; and that 2) He is ever behind me cleaning up the mess that I make of things in my attempts to serve Him; and that 3) He is ever with me guiding me along through life as He prepares me to be with Him for all eternity. The more I embrace my weakness, the closer that Jesus draws me close.

Maybe, it’s just taken 10 years to sink deep enough into my heart where the way I live and plan my life is beginning to reflect this truth. These days, I’m not as worried about things as I was before and I’m especially not as worried of what other people may think of me. This has been so freeing. It’s like I’ve reached this place in my journey of faith where my desire to be faithful to God has grown greater than my desire to be make a name for myself. Let me explain. When I am concerned about making a name for myself I am more apt to: 1) seek other people’s approval; 2) be more concerned about my image; and 3) spend time worrying about the future. But, when my sole concern is about being faithful to Jesus, everything changes because I am then able to be more present with Him and can respond to Him from moment to moment. It’s not that I don’t make plans for the future, but that I entrust my future plans to Him and this makes me more available to Jesus in the day to day. It’s when I am distracted by my own personal ambitions and aspirations that God’s voice in my life fades which is a tragedy. A song that always ministers to me is “Above All Else” by Vicky Beeching. This song helps to bring me back to the reality that at the end of the day: It’s not about what I do for Jesus or about how He blesses or doesn’t bless me, but about Jesus Himself.

It’s in moments like this that the Holy Spirit brings me back to the simplest of truths where He refocuses my attentions back to where they should be: on the joy of spending time with Jesus, our wonderful and beautiful Savior King.