His Grace is Enough

WEEKLY DEVOTIONAL with Patrice Tsague

“And He said to me ’My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore, most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” – 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NKJV)

Do you feel weak and vulnerable? Do you have an enormous and insurmountable task before you? Do you know how to tap into the grace of God?

If every goal you attempt in business and life is within the reach of your human potential, then your goals are not bold and audacious enough. And if the vision of your company or your life is what you alone can accomplish without the help of others and supernatural intervention, then your vision is too small. The Apostle Paul was given a vision by God to take the Gospel to the Gentiles and be a witness for Him before kings and the children of Israel.

“But the Lord said to him. ’Go for he [Paul] is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear my name before the Gentiles, kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for my name’s sake.’” – Acts 9:15-16 (NKJV)

Along the journey of fulfilling this vision, Paul faced many obstacles including his own human limitations, which the Bible calls a thorn in the flesh. The Bible is not clear about what this problem was, but what we do know is that it was something so painful that Paul cried out to God three times to take it away from him without success. In spite of this problem, the Apostle Paul went on to accomplish the vision the Lord gave him and authored more books in the New Testament than any other apostle. What enabled the Apostle Paul to do so much despite his personal challenges? Grace. Each time he cried out to God for help, God reminded him that His grace was all he needed. His grace was enough for him.

I remember a meeting I had with a client that led to a decision to make one of the partners CEO of the company. The immediate reaction of the partner who was made CEO was “I cannot do it. I don’t have the time or experience.” I reminded him that by stepping up he could save the company, and he did. God’s grace was enough for him. He has not only done a great job, but through his leadership, the company’s culture has changed and despite facing challenges along the way, they are on the verge of tremendous growth. If all you do in life is only to attempt the things that are safe and within your reach, you will never fully live life or experience God to the fullest. We must strive to pursue goals that are so bold and visions that are so daring that without the grace of God, we cannot realize them.

Grace is the strength of God that is activated when we reach our limits. It is God’s sufficiency that is present only in our insufficiency. It is God’s strength at work when we are weak. It is only present when we have exhausted all of our options. Grace cannot exist alongside our ability or efforts. Either you depend on God’s grace or on your own strength. You cannot rely on both. Once the Apostle Paul understood this revelation, with great enthusiasm he cried out, “Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in distresses, for Christ’s sake for when I’m weak, then I’m strong.” – 2 Corinthians 12:9b-10 (NKJV)

In other words, Paul realized that grace is most present when he feels most vulnerable and inadequate. This, however, goes contrary to the entrepreneurs’ instincts. We do not want to feel vulnerable, we do not want to feel weak or inadequate, and we must be in control at all times. If this is so, then we must forsake the grace of God because we cannot have it both ways. Grace cannot exist where our strength is present; grace is only present when we cannot do it by ourselves.

Of course, this does not mean that we should attempt impossible tasks just so we can experience the grace of God. That would be testing God and that can be dangerous and ill-advised. Grace works in concert with God’s calling and God’s will. The things you pursue must be those things that God has called you to do and are in line with His plan for your life. No matter how challenging or difficult, no matter what personal issues you may be facing, if those things are within God’s plan for your life and His will, then you can be assured that His grace is enough. It is all you need.

My prayer for you today is that you will dare to pursue bold and audacious God-inspired goals beyond your human abilities by tapping into the sufficiency of God’s grace.