My Grace is Sufficient

The other day, I was in prayer with God, and this thought, My grace is sufficient, popped into my mind. God had me think on it and study it, because I asked a simple question, "What does that mean?"

I searched the meaning of "grace" because I was curious exactly what it meant - and to my surprise, here was the definition given to me by Google.

: (in Christian belief) the free and unmerited favor of God

I've heard many definitions of God's grace, but this one stuck out to me the most. God's grace is free and unmerited. That means, we don't have to do anything to get this grace and favor; we just have to be His.

Now that we've heard the definition, let's go back to My grace is sufficient. The first part of 2 Corinthians 12:9 says, "And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness...”

My grace is sufficient...  God's grace is enough. What's it enough for? Anything. Everything. It doesn't matter what situation we're facing, what matters is that having God on our side, that's enough. 

Take a look at what God said in the next part of that verse, "My strength is made perfect in weakness."  

When we feel at our weakest, God's strength is perfect. As I was struggling with some things, my weaknesses, they brought me closer to God. They opened up doors I hadn't experienced with Christ before. I had opened a door to the Savior, even though I was struggling and feeling all alone. God's strength helped me through my weakness. His strength helped me fight a battle I had been struggling with.

His strength had proven to be perfect because I was relying on Him to get me through this. I didn't have the strength myself to face the tormenting thoughts the devil was placing in my head. (I was fighting worry and depression, and the devil was using this against me.) It had been a constant battle for weeks to get over this and I was worn down. I didn't know if I could make it anymore, but God showed me that His strength was enough to get me through because it was perfect. I'm only human. I couldn't have done it on my own, and God knew that. 

This whole time, God's grace was more than sufficient. His free and unmerited favor was mine; all I had to do was reach out and get it.  His strength was mine. All I had to do was reach out and take it. 

Don't let your situation dictate your life. God has sent you His strength. Lean on Him. And always remember, His grace (free and unmerited favor) is more than enough. You can do this. You can make it through whatever storm you're facing. Don't let the devil have the wheel because he'll take you down the wrong path every time.

Stop Talking, Start Praying - Moving beyond our worries

Some things have been on my mind lately.  Mostly, they’ve been revolving around our country, what’s happening with it, and all these politics.  I’m not a very political person, and I usually don’t speak out about my politics.  This is still one of those times.  This post ISN’T about politics or how I view the running of this country.  This post is about something we’ve probably forgotten to do. 

PRAY.

I’m not saying that you don’t pray.  That’s between you and God, but what I’m saying is that it’s easy to FORGET to pray about important things.  Instead, we want to talk about it, get our feelings off our chest.  There’s nothing wrong with that, but sometimes, that can do more damage than good.

I strongly believe that we need to stop talking about it and start praying about it.  Talking won’t do any good.  It will lead you to worry unnecessarily or start unintentional debates that might not lead to the best of times. 

My family and I were discussing politics and some decisions we weren’t too thrilled about our president making, but I stopped the discussion and said, “It’s time we stop talking and start praying.”  Because, you know what?  God has us in His hands.  God will be the one who delivers His people out of the mess we find ourselves in.

Psalm 29:11 (Amplified Bible) says, “The Lord will give [unyielding and impenetrable] strength to His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace.”

So why should we keep talking about our problems, or the problems we MIGHT face when the Bible says that The Lord will give us strength; He will bless us with peace?  Isn’t that enough that enough to know that no matter what happens in our life, that God will give us strength and peace?  He isn’t going to let anything bad happen to His people. 

Sure, we all face trials and tribulations, but God will give us that peace and strength we need to survive it. 

This goes beyond politics.  This applies to everything in our lives.  We need to stop worrying and talking about it to praying about it and seeking out the only person who can help us – God. 

I’m not saying don’t discuss your problems with friends, family members, counselors, etc.  What I’m saying is, sometimes we need to talk to God about it.  Prayer changes everything.  So, stop talking about it and start praying about it.  You’ll feel much better about it in the end.