I have allergies. In reality that is a lot like saying the Appalachian Trail is a walking path. I do not remember the numbers but this is close; the last time I was tested I graded highly allergic 4/4 for 40 out of 43 of the allergens for which I was tested. Bottom line, if it is in the air I am allergic to it. I have had 7 operations on my sinuses with the result that they do not exist as created any longer.
When I was a kid that reality kept me from going on Boy Scout camp outs and on the sidelines of sporting events. It wasn't until I started swimming in high school that I begin to breath easily. It was in college during a rugby practice that I remember breathing for the first time out of both nostrils at the same time. It was such an event I can probably take you to the spot on the practice field where it happened.
The point of this is that I have fought physical limits all of my life. A couple of days ago a strong front blew through Tulsa. Winds in excess of 45 mph most of the day. That kicked up dust and pollen, allergens, as a result I have been flattened. It is frustrating.
I have a lot that I need to do. I do not feel like doing any of it. It is at best frustrating.
Then I remember that none of this really caught the Lord by surprise. He has assigned me work to do, Ephesians 2:10. He created me and knows my frame that is my strengths and weaknesses, Psalm 139:13 – 16. He knows my limits and has put things in my life that even limits me further. That seems, on the surface, counterproductive. But Paul had the same challenge, 2 Corinthians 15:7 – 10. Look at Christ’s response to Paul begging for the limitations to be lifted, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.”
Our limits, weaknesses, failures, mean that we are totally dependent on Christ’s grace. I have to be continually reminded of this when I get kicked in the head by allergies. It is not my ability that allows me to serve Christ. It is His grace.
Reading this may not help you. But it helped me to write it.
The point of this is that I have fought physical limits all of my life. A couple of days ago a strong front blew through Tulsa. Winds in excess of 45 mph most of the day. That kicked up dust and pollen, allergens, as a result I have been flattened. It is frustrating.
I have a lot that I need to do. I do not feel like doing any of it. It is at best frustrating.
Then I remember that none of this really caught the Lord by surprise. He has assigned me work to do, Ephesians 2:10. He created me and knows my frame that is my strengths and weaknesses, Psalm 139:13 – 16. He knows my limits and has put things in my life that even limits me further. That seems, on the surface, counterproductive. But Paul had the same challenge, 2 Corinthians 15:7 – 10. Look at Christ’s response to Paul begging for the limitations to be lifted, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.”
Our limits, weaknesses, failures, mean that we are totally dependent on Christ’s grace. I have to be continually reminded of this when I get kicked in the head by allergies. It is not my ability that allows me to serve Christ. It is His grace.
Reading this may not help you. But it helped me to write it.
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