PICKLE JARS AND OTHER SIGNS OF WEAKNESS

I believe the Packaging Industry has had a closed-door meeting - somewhere in the world - in which they have secretly decided to make things impossible for the average person to open. Yes. Impossible.  We shop in stores, and take things off shelves and put them in our carts with the naive assumption that we will be able to open those things when we get home.  

Which things?  Every thing.  For example, I believe, though I have no confirmed sources at the moment, that The Cheese Slices People stood up at this clandestine meeting and said, "We hereby agree to make our zip lock bags virtually impossible to pry apart. No one will ever be aware that we are, in reality, glueing them shut. People will have to use scissors to open the bag. They will take a few slices of cheese, put it on their sandwiches, and put the remaining cheese back in the refrigerator.  Air will get in, the cheese will get hard, and they will have to purchase yet another plastic package. Sales will increase by five million percent."

My sources tell me that The Pickle Jar People were in attendance and loudly applauded the idea. The Pickle People don't actually want anyone to eat pickles. They like to make pickles, put them in jars, sell them and laugh as they imagine people like me spending 7 minutes banging the top of the jar on the kitchen counter... in an impossible attempt to open the jar just so I can eat a pickle with the sandwich which has the cheese that was in the package that I just used a jackhammer to pry open.

Thankfully, the Lord has provided me an answer to my inability to open anything.  It is my husband, Phil, who seems to have the same strength he had when we were teenagers. I simply say, "HON!! Help!  I can't open this."  And he lovingly rescues me from sure and imminent starvation and opens stuff up.  

It is MY WEAKNESS that reminds me of HIS STRENGTH.   At the very moment I see how weak I am.. is the moment I am so awed by my husband's constant strength 
When I am weak, then he is strong.  I don't go around crying and bemoaning my weakness (well.. if you don't count this blog.)  I simply rejoice that my husband is a strong AND patient man   And what's the point of having a champion living with me if I continue to feel ashamed of being weak?  I am weak.  He is strong.  

How difficult life would be if I kept overlooking the good news that:

Someone Strong is in love with me.

I think it's obvious where I'm going with this... 

In spite of all my knowledge of my true identity as God's child..
more often than I can admit I come face to face with my human weakness.   
If I focus on my weakness I am soon overwhelmed by how scary life actually is.  I don't know if I can do what I need to do.. and be who I need to be...

AND THEN THE HOLY SPIRIT REMINDS ME:
My hope and joy is found in remembering how strong HE IS and not in focusing on how weak I am. 
On my own... I  am weak. 
When I am weak... when I feel inadequate to handle what I have to handle.. when I see how powerless I actually am against the things Life flings my way.. I find hope in remembering...

SOMEONE STRONG IS IN LOVE ME. 

SOMEONE STRONGER THAN STRONG IS IN LOVE WITH ME

.

SOMEONE WHO HAS ALL STRENGTH, ALL POWER, ALL DOMINION, ALL AUTHORITY, ALL EXCELLENCE

IS

IN

LOVE 

WITH

ME

My hope is that today you will remember once again that 

Someone Strong is in love with you. 

He lives with you.  Right there. Right now. You can keep trying to do things in your own strength... OR.. you can simply cry out, "Help!  I'm not strong enough to do this.".

Our weakness does not surprise Him. 

 Our weakness surprises us.

Finding it difficult to see yourself as an Overcomer today?
Someone Strong is in love with you.
Someone Strong gave His life for you.
Someone Strong defeated whatever it is you are sure is going to defeat you. 
Relax.

When you give Him your weakness, then He gives you His Strength.

"He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”  2 Corinthians 12:9