 |
| The Nut Gatherers, William Adolphe Bouguereau, 1882 |
Sometimes we have to be strong for the weak. My sister who lives with my parents is weak mentally from birth complications and needs the strength of her family, those who surround her with love and care.
And we urge you, brothers, ... encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. (1 Thessalonians 5:14)Yet, where do any of us find our strength? I often feel weakness rather than strength. But it is in that very weakness that God gives grace, and His strength is then made manifest.
Acknowledging weakness brings hope. Then we can look beyond ourselves and autonomy. We were created for relationships, to be interdependent on one another. Where I am weak, another is strong. We bring our strengths and weaknesses to one another.
Yet, back to the question... where do any of us find our strength?
My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. (Psalm 121:2)
For when I am weak, He is strong. (2 Corinthians 12:10)
It is good that His strength is seen through our weakness. Our purpose is to glorify Him, and it is as others see Him at work in us that we glorify the giver of all grace and all strength. For it is in Him that they will find hope and call out for His strength in their own weakness.
My sister struggles in ways others of us in our family do not. But her faith in Jesus is strong, and she is a true prayer warrior for those she loves. I know God will strengthen her with His abundant grace when she needs it most greatly. Our parents are elderly, and I sometimes wonder how she will cope when their final days come. I've seen anxiety and fear arise quickly within her whenever our mother becomes ill. In time, she will need God's strength pouring from His hand through her family to uphold her. I am thankful we can look beyond ourselves in our need.
So you, too, dear one, be strong and of good courage, for the giver of grace and strength is at work in you, if you are one of His children. But if you are not one of His, do seek Him, and you will find Him.
Seek the Lord while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near. (Isaiah 56:6)
Painting ~ The Nut Gatherers, William Adolphe Bouguereau, 1882
WikiArt public domain
