For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 

But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies…

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.   (II Corinthians 4:6-10, 16-18 ESV)

Yes, this is an old favorite… I think I have written about this verse before.  But I am brought back to its resounding truth and my soul is anchored by the weight of it today.  It is the chorus of my heart and the melody before my King.

Surpassing power belongs to God and not to me… afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; struck down, but alive ever more… the light momentary afflictions we endure in this age are preparing us for an eternal weight of glory that is beyond anything we could hope for or imagine and so our eyes are fixed not on our circumstances or the things we face in time and space, but on things eternal, our destiny in Christ and hope of glory.  We fix our gaze on the glory of God in the face of Christ.  For He alone is worthy of our attention.

It’s so easy to measure ourselves by our outward circumstance, our abilities, and what we “do” day to day to make a difference in the world around us.   I remember filling out disability forms several years ago and coming face to face with my own, very false estimations of worth in the world in a way that left me utterly decimated before the Lord.   The forms basically outlined every single thing that I could NOT do… that was their purpose (and they were quite successful, I might add).   And so I spent many days during that season recording and listing my UN-achievements and my DIS-abilities.  It was awful… and by ‘awful,’ I mean utterly atrocious.   I don’t think I could exaggerate that whole experience if I tried.  I was completely unprepared for the impact and revelation it would have on my life and heart.   There I sat face to face with my own weaknesses and inabilities to even do ‘normal’ life activities… I was exposed before my own eyes.  The truth was out.  I was not that great… not that strong… and I really had nothing to boast of at all.    Unbeknowst to me, I had been defining myself all along by what I could “do” – what gifts I had to offer, what ministry tasks I could perform, my type A personality, and even my ability to seemingly ‘control’ the world around me by excelling at all sorts of things I thought mattered.   When all that was stripped away, who was I really?  That was the question that came before the Lord.  And so begun a season where He is truly re-defining me and refining me in the reality of His love and His identity.   It’s been a long season.  You see, I’m extrordinarily full of pride… I think maybe more than most   And so, I think this season may last a lifetime… but even if it takes all my days, I want HIS NAME written on my heart and not my own. 

Thus says the LORD:”Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.”    (Jeremiah 9:23-24 ESV)

Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.   (II Corinthians 9b-10 ESV)

These have been the meditations of my heart this last week.  I’m still ‘healing’ from the fall down the stairs, and I’ve been mostly confined to the four walls of my room these last days.  I’m weary, but I’m strengthened by the knowledge of God.   Today I was thinking of the ‘great cloud of witnesses’ and our call to run the race set before us with endurance as they peer at us intently through the lattice of time along with the Holy Three.   I don’t know if they cheer us on, but in my heart, I was imagining the voices of the saints of old surrounding the body of Christ in the earth today singing, “You CAN press on… keep running… He is real, He is beautiful, and He is worth it.  Don’t be afraid to let suffering have its way in your life that it may produce endurance, character and a Hope that will never disappoint you.  Don’t give up… keep coming to the God whose love even the grave cannot contain.  Keep running child, for God is with you.”  And so I’m running into His embrace.  God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever and forever (Ps 73).

What defines a man?   The question should be Who… Who defines a man?   God has redefined the word “great” in my life these last few years.   Those that I respect the most are not ‘great’ because they have a powerful ministry or so called ‘anointing’ on their lives.  It’s not because of what they contribute to me or to the body of Christ or to the world at large.  Their greatness hinges on a God who so loved the world that He gave… He served… He loved to the end and beyond time itself.   And they have given themselves not to the outward appearance that is so often valued the most, but to a life in secret before the One who is Reality and Greatness and Life Himself.   They have truly abandoned themselves to the knowledge of the God who practices steadfast love, justice and righteousness in the earth, that they may boast only in Jesus Christ.  It’s not lip service – it’s real.  The truth of their lives is not just in the pulpit or in public, it is lived out before the throne.   It is rare in the earth… it’s the narrow way.   But it exists.   Oh, this is my heart’s ambition.  I am so not there yet, I can assure you (remember I said above I need a lot of work), but it is the truest desire of my heart (which in and of itself must be the Lord because I know the ugly state of my heart better than anyone else )

So may we all be encouraged to go our way to the secret place before His throne where all our longings are fulfilled and where Greatness is found… and may we endure, as James says, so that steadfastness may have its full effect, that we may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.  (James 1)   Jesus is real, He is beautiful, and He is worth it.