The Grace of Enough - Enough Grace

 

“Grace is not the absence of struggle. It is the presence of God in the midst of struggle. We often ask God to remove the burden, while God quietly offers the strength to carry it. Sometimes the miracle is not that our circumstances change, but that we are changed within them.”— Madeleine L'Engle

Most of us have prayed some version of the same prayer:

"Lord, please take this away."

Take away the illness.
Take away the uncertainty.
Take away the grief.
Take away the difficult relationship.
Take away the fear.

Author Anne Lamott classifies these kinds of prayer in a single word: "Help!"

I've learned something important from the years of asking God for help: more often than not, God's help doesn't show up in the ways I want it to, if at all.  

I know that might sound like an awful thing for a pastor to say, but it's the unvarnished truth.  There may be times when your cry for help is responded to in a miraculous way, but most often you feel like you're screaming into the void. 

The Apostle Paul knew what it meant to wrestle with unanswered prayer. Three times he pleaded with God to remove what he called his "thorn in the flesh." Instead of removing it, God responded with these unforgettable words: "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Notice what God promises.

Not immediate relief.

Not an explanation.

Not an easier path.

God promises enough grace.

That promise changes everything.

I love what Anne Lamott wrote in her book about prayer when she addressed the whole idea of crying out to God when things seem hopeless: 

If you told me you had said to God, "It is all hopeless, and I don't have a clue if You exist, but I could use a hand," it would almost bring tears to my eyes, tears of pride in you, for the courage it takes to get real-really real. It would make me want to sit next to you at the dinner table.

Grace is what sustains us when our pleas for help seem to go unnoticed.  It is the quiet strength that enables us to keep loving when our hearts are tired, to keep hoping when the future is uncertain, and to keep trusting when answers remain elusive.

We often discover the sufficiency of God's grace only after we've reached the limits of our own strength.

Perhaps that is why Paul could eventually write, "Whenever I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Corinthians 12:10). He had learned that weakness was no longer something to fear. It had become the place where God's power was most clearly revealed.

Whatever challenge you face today, remember this: you do not walk into it alone.

God's grace will meet you there.

Perhaps not all at once.

Perhaps not in the way you expected.

But always in the measure you need.

May it be so, and may the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you always. Amen. 

Prayer

God of unfailing grace, thank you for remaining with me even when life is difficult. When I long for immediate answers, remind me that your presence is greater than my circumstances. Strengthen me where I feel weak, encourage me where I feel discouraged, and help me trust that your grace will always be sufficient for whatever this day may bring. Amen.

Reflection Questions

1. Where have you experienced God's strength in the middle of your weakness?
2. How does God's promise of "sufficient grace" reshape your understanding of unanswered prayer?
3. What burden do you need to entrust to God today?