A Thorn in My Side

A thorn in the flesh was given to me[...]Three times I begged the Lord about this, that it might leave me but he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness." I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses, in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me. 2 Corinthians 7-9
Sometimes we are not aware of the goodness of God when that thorn is placed in our own flesh. Rather we become centered in this weakness, fighting with it, losing control rather than gaining it. For me it was not so obvious. My attempts to seek a perfect place in the practice of faith and in worshiping He, whom I love so much, has led me to quite the opposite. In the "aha" moment I realized that God was telling me something. At the altar where we are to meet Jesus, we must place as our sacrifice, not the thorn itself for we can never rid ourselves of it, but rather the hollow, selfish, divisive, and even evil works that come from centering our weakness. We must surrender it to allow Christ to dwell in us. Resting in this place where the comfort and love of our Father gives us confidence to be obedient and resolve to follow His commandments. To know your weakness is to know Christ at the cross.