2 Corinthians 12:9 (NLT)
Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.
One sentence in this section struck me more than any other.
“Turning inward is one way to respond [to our lack of control]; the other is to acknowledge our lack of control and reach out for GOD’s help."
You’ll recall that I got to serve on a tornado response team in Oklahoma last month. On Sunday morning, we visited the church which allowed us to camp out in their parking lot. The pastor attempted to narrow down the two most common responses he’d come across in his counseling sessions since the horrific storm. They were: 1- Why me? And 2- Help!
The two sharply contrast and reflect the attitude of a person’s heart.
1- Why me?…
Or as Francis Chan would label it, the “inward” response. While its understandable given the circumstances, no statement is as selfish and self-centered as this one. The pastor related how the phrase is almost always followed by self-pitying rants, which may last anywhere from two minutes to two hours. We've all done it. But usually it's for much less. The car won’t crank…they don’t have our video in the RedBox machine…our child is pitching an unholy temper tantrum at the grocery store. It’s the victim mentality. Only seeing the uncontrollable tragedy. And even then seeing the tragedy that happened to me, me, me! Like it hasn't happened to millions of other people. (Again, its easy to say this from the relative comfort of my desk now).
2- Then there is the other option, the outward option.
The pastor referred to this as the “Help!” option. The desperate cry of a hurting child pleading to their Heavenly Father. Realizing that they have no control over the circumstances of life. Acknowledging humility and a lack of control even over basic necessities. Despite being the primal cry of a helpless child, it’s the more mature option. It’s the choice of someone who recognizes that you have to, in the words of the Serenity Prayer, “ …take, like Jesus did, this sinful world as it is, not as we would have it to be…”
Which course of action will you take?
Author’s Note: for more on this topic, read pages 45-46 of Crazy Love by Francis Chan and Danae Yankoski
