Allow God’s Grace to Work by Removing Your Masks of Competency by BRIAN FANNIN for Charisma News
Yeah, yeah, you know all the typical vices: sex, money, drugs, alcohol.
And, I’m sure you’re frequently graced with chatter on the typical sins in the Christian realm like pride, gossip, homosexuality … Jezebel and all her dramatic heresies. But what about competence? Charisma? Organization skills? No?
Well, you’re in for a broadside to the proverbial face today because I’d like to suggest the outlandish notion that most of us are actually using our gifts rather than vices as vehicles to distance ourselves from reliance on Jesus. Not tracking with me yet? Let’s take a walk.
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I’ve met a lot of really powerful leaders in my life. Some are global-level leaders. I’ve been coached by plenty of those and even lived in houses with some of these incredible spiritual parents. Through all of this blessed influence in my life I’ve noticed one trend over the years—they’re all a mess.
You heard me right. Every single one of them is never a single bit as shiny behind the scenes as they are on social media, a stage or a book. Don’t hear me wrong; these are all genuine men and women of God who are not trying to hide who they really are, but once you get behind the scenes of someone’s life, you really get to boldly discover their humanity. Most of these leaders are still pursuing God today, discipling genuine Jesus-followers and producing great fruit in their lives—but some aren’t.
A few have fallen ministries, broken marriages and devastated families. And there is an ever-present thread woven into their tapestry of brokenness. It’s called an inability to embrace weakness.
Weakness as a virtue sounds very counterintuitive to the CEO, the influencer, the stereotypical megachurch pastor and the religion addict, but I’d like to submit to you that it’s very much a value of heaven. And a mandate from Jesus.
2 Corinthians 12:9 says that His strength is made perfect in our weakness, right? Now, I’m nowhere near a qualified theologian, but it seems to me like this passage suggests that God has actually submitted a measure of His strength to whether or not we’ll admit that we’re weak.
