2 Corinthians 12:9- God’s power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Isaiah 42:8- I am the Lord, that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.
Have you ever read a scripture so much that it just becomes “common knowledge” to you? I mean, you hear it all the time in church, it is your “go to” verse when you’re going through adversity, and when you’re forced to spit out a memory verse it’s the first one that rolls of your tongue. But it never takes root in you, and never comes ALIVE until one day when the Holy Spirit decides to slap you upside the head with it and finally it’s like “Oh, that is what you meant by that verse God!”
Well, Jonathan and I had a big slap upside the head moment last week concerning the two verses above. We know and preach that God’s power is made perfect in our weakness, and we know and preach that God is jealous for His glory and does not want to share it with another. But just because we know it, it doesn’t mean that our sinful flesh always submits to it. We are not too naive to acknowledge that pride is a constant battle in the hearts of man and in our lives. Regardless of what any of us think, we are more than likely going to find ourselves trying to control or manipulate the environments around us if we are not fully submitting to God’s lordship in our lives. It is easy to do in life and even easier to do in ministry. But there is one thing for certain, God is a jealous God and when he says that he will not share his praise with another, he means it!
Sooo…with all of that said, here is the story and lesson learned last week when the Holy Spirit knocked us a good one:)
It was week two of youth camps and Jonathan and I were running on fossil fumes spiritually speaking. I was worn out from two weeks of traveling, ministering, and being in the hot sun while pregnant, and Jonathan had compiled and preached seven sermons almost all back to back. We also had family, traveling, and ministry stresses that were weighing on our hearts and minds so heavily that we knew it was going to be a struggle to forget ourselves and focus on the students that coming evening.
We drove up to the church and before Jonathan got out of the car he said, “Well, I guess tonight I’ll learn what it means to preach in the midst of adversity, pray for me babe”. I felt so badly for him and thought to myself, “man these people are depending on us to bring a good word, to stir up the hearts of these youth and look at us..we are a mess”. We both felt completely empty and somehow had forgotten (though we thought we knew it so well) 2 Corinthians 12:9.
As Jonathan went up front to give his message, I meandered into the back of the pews hoping no one would stop me and notice my watering eyes. As he finished up his message, I sighed with relief that he had made it through. It was not his most incredible message (sorry babe), but I knew that he did what was expected of him, and I was proud of him for it. He closed in prayer and we both made our way to the car. Once in the car we looked at each other and just accepted the brutality of the evening. Little did we know that God had another plan for that evening and was about to show us what HE can do in our weakness…
After we left, one of the girls in the audience was so pierced by something that Jonathan had said in his message that she was moved to worship God through singing and prayer outside the building along with another girl. They grabbed a guitar and began their own little worship session. Within minutes, the rest of the camp joins in with them and they are all crying out to God in worship and prayer. I’m talking 12 year olds to 19 year olds, the softest hearts to the hardest hearts, all joining in! This worship meeting lasted into the early morning hours the next day and by the time they all separated, at least 6 kids testified to encountering God in such a way that they gave their lives to him fully in the midst of it. It was incredible and according to their youth pastor completely uncharacteristic of them.
Now you can only imagine what Jonathan and I were thinking when we showed up the next day to such a drastic atmosphere of praise and worship. As each student stepped forward to share their testimonies the following evening it was evident that God had encountered everyone in a unique and specific way. And even though we were not a part of the meeting, there is no doubt in our minds that God was wanting to encounter us in a specific way too. We believe that he used that evening of adversity, weakness and inner turmoil to encounter us with his POWER and his JEALOUSY. He wanted to make clear to us that 2 Corinthians 12:9 was not written frivolously but for a purpose; that we may BOAST in our weakness and remember that if we just make ourselves available to the preaching of His word, He will make it grow.
We had read that verse in scripture, memorized it and recited it, but it was not until we encountered him in it that it became real to us. We know better now than to think it is “all on us” to see change in the church. He is jealous for his name to be glorified and his praise to be his own!
It was as if God were standing before us as an earthly father gently saying, “It is all about my power and my glory. It is not about your strength and not your confidence. I will let you participate in what I am doing, but I will not share my praise…do you understand me?” To which both of our hearts responded, “Yes Sir”.
BUT GOD IS GOOD!!! And His grace is sufficient!
