But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:7–9
I recently read a great article from
the March issue of Alliance Life. It always amazes me how
timely articles like this seem to be in my life. I had begun to reach
a state of “pressed” and “struck down”-ness and the Lord used
the words of this article to minister and encourage my soul. My hope in posting this is to offer
transparency regarding personal struggles in order to encourage
others and ask for prayer (for a pouring out of His “all-surpassing
power”)
“...there are problems that seem
relentless, continually bombarding mind, body and spirit. Yet not one
believer’s soul can be crushed, because the transcendent power of
God through Christ is resident within us through the deposit of the
Holy Spirit.” (http://www.alliancelife.org/article.php?id=895)
We arrived to Thailand last July
(almost a year ago now). Knowing that sacrifice is a part of the life
that missionaries are called to, but not yet understanding what that
might look like, our first year here has been full of various
difficulties.
In August our only brother got
married. It was hard to be so far from family when we just wanted to
be there to celebrate the joyous and beautiful occasion. Of course we
were sad to miss such a special event, but we were still so fresh to
the field.
In November, our dear Grandpa
Neigenfind's health began to decline. We just wanted to be there to
hear his stories one more time, or to see the glimmer in his face as
he talked about the joy of Heaven, or to just silently sit by his
side and honor a man whose life had so radically followed the way of
the Lord.
And in January at his memorial service,
we simply wanted to be able to stand among those who had been so
touched by his life and listen to their stories. To hug our grieving
family members and recount all of the wonderful memories we have.
This time the pain of being so far struck harder.
During spring we had the joy of
hearing that our brother and his wife are expecting a baby in the
fall. What a joy to celebrate. But we wish we could be there. To see
Connor and Claire become parents, to hold that sweet new baby in our
arms, to see the child grow and learn and explore.
So there we were (and here we are),
feeling pressed in upon by the stresses of our daily life and
studying the language (often without seeing much progress), feeling
struck down by the pain of being so far from those we love. Yet, we needed (and still need) to
realize that the power that Paul speaks of in 2 Corinthians 4 is
absolutely radical.
“...it can move mountains, stem a
raging tide, bring down walls—and it is all from God, not from us.
This power, beyond our comprehension, is encased within frail, weak,
easily bruised and easily broken us! We are the jars of clay, and yet
we are a powerhouse because of the transcendent power of God within
us!” (http://www.alliancelife.org/article.php?id=895)
God has given us the opportunity to be
radically filled with His power in order to combat the struggles and
difficulties that we face in this life. I have been encouraged by
Paul's words to change my focus to the power that God has chosen to
place in side of His children. I know that His presence and power is all that
I need to follow Him in this life.
-Sarah
Alife article written by Donna Baptiste; can be read in full at (http://www.alliancelife.org/article.php?id=895)