When I am Weak, I am Strong - 14th Sunday in OT

Can you hear St. Paul testifying about what God had done in his life? “Look at me,” he would say, “I once persecuted the church. Look at me, a man who has to battle this humiliating affliction--this thorn in the flesh. Yet Christ has used me to plant churches all over the known world.” St. Paul was a man of tremendous intellect. He was also a man of unquestionable persuasive powers. Perhaps if it had not been for his thorn in the flesh, he would have leaned upon his own ability rather than the power of God working through him. And you and I would never have heard the name of Paul of Tarsus. That’s the way God works. St. Paul's weakness became his strength. His scar became a star. His hurt became a halo. And the same thing can happen to us--if we don’t give into our weaknesses, and if our weaknesses causes us to rely upon God.