Weakness Does Not Mean Defeat

In my devotion today I did what I almost always do, which is look up the scriptures that go with it - comparing about 4 different versions. I do this to get a fuller understanding. I pray of course for the Lord to help me understand His Word and for Him to allow the Holy Spirit to move in me, so I can apply it to my own life. So here are the scriptures that I felt compelled to share today.

2 Corinthians 12:9
Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

9 But the Lord said, “My grace is all you need. Only when you are weak can everything be done completely by my power.” So I will gladly boast about my weaknesses. Then Christ’s power can stay in me.

2 Corinthians 12:9
Living Bible (TLB)

9 Each time he said, “No. But I am with you; that is all you need. My power shows up best in weak people.” Now I am glad to boast about how weak I am; I am glad to be a living demonstration of Christ’s power, instead of showing off my own power and abilities.

2 Corinthians 12:9
New Life Version (NLV)

9 He answered me, “I am all you need. I give you My loving-favor. My power works best in weak people.” I am happy to be weak and have troubles so I can have Christ’s power in me.

2 Corinthians 12:9
The Message (MSG)

7-10 Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn’t get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn’t think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me,

My grace is enough; it’s all you need.
My strength comes into its own in your weakness.
Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.

So there you have them. Have a blessed day!
Meghan