HEART MATTERS
“…Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness…” 2nd Corinthians 12:7-9
Do you remember as a kid getting a splinter in your hand or finger? Remember what a pain it was and how much it hurt? Remember how you had to stop whatever you were doing and run to mom to make sure the intruder was removed immediately?! We don’t like anything that sticks or pricks us-anything that causes us pain. The pain from a splinter is quick, sharp, and intense. It occurs abruptly and unexpectedly, catching us completely off guard! For a moment we’re taken aback but it doesn’t take long for the shock to wear off and we’re off determined more than ever to get it out. No one wants a “thorn” in their flesh! In fact we’re almost always willing to go through the pain of having it removed rather than allowing it to stay and become a source of constant pain.
I remember being pregnant with my firstborn and having some anxiety thinking about the birthing process. However by the ninth month after blowing up big as a house, being unable to tie my own shoes strings, and just being uncomfortable all around, I couldn’t wait to deliver my baby. I no longer feared the process or the pain of giving birth. I was on a countdown eagerly anticipating the day I’d go into labor. When the time came, I was just as ready as he was!
If we’re sensible, when it comes to pain, the end justifies the means! We will do whatever it takes to avoid having to live in constant pain. If a tooth is causing excruciating continuous pain and can’t be saved, we will have it pulled. If we develop a painful growth or dangerous tumor we’re willing to undergo the knife and have surgery to have it removed. When we’re sick or in chronic pain we’re always hoping for health and healing.
The Apostle Paul was no different when it came to what he called “a thorn in his flesh”. Although he never specifies what it was, it was grievous enough for him to press in hard and plead with the Lord to take it away from him. It had to have been bad because Paul also referred to it as “a messenger of Satan” to “torment” him. The Lord graciously allowed Paul to know why He allowed Satan to give him the “thorn in his flesh”. He also let him know He had no plans to remove it.
The thorn had a purpose. For the Apostle Paul, a man who was called to accomplish great things for The Lord, the thorn served to keep him “from becoming conceited,..” 2nd Corinthians 12:7. Even a man as committed and surrendered to the Lord as Paul needed The Lord to put in place something that would protect him from his own human propensity to sin.
Likewise when the Lord allows a “thorn” in the life of a believer who is walking closely to Him you better believe it’s there on purpose. Whether “the thorn” is the result of the enemy’s attack (like the Apostle Paul’s case), the result of poor choices, or the consequence of sin-if it remains after repentance and prayer, you should strongly consider that it’s there because it’s supposed to be.
There are some spiritual lessons we can only learn through the painful experience of a “thorn”. There are some things (attitudes and behaviors) that have to go and they can only be purged by the ongoing pain of “the thorn”. There’s a purpose the Lord may have for us that’s so great it can potentially wreck us, and only “the thorn” can keep us from glorying in ourselves. There are new and different seasons to which we are called that only the uncomfortable and challenging “thorn” can prepare us for. There are times when the Lord calls His children to some pretty incredible and even seemingly impossible tasks and we need to be ready! God wants His children to have the wherewithal to endure, to persevere, and to be strong!
The thorn is there to grow us, deliver us, and propel us forward for Christ. The pain of the thorn is secondary to the purpose it is there to serve. In other words, its for our own good! But “how can something so painful be for our good” you ask? Remember the cross! The word “excruciating” actually comes from a word used to describe the pain of being crucified. And yet the Lord Jesus endured that great physical pain for hours-all for our sake. In addition to the physical pain He suffered, spiritually, He also endured the excruciating pain of taking on all of our sins and experiencing separation from The Father-all for us. The writer of Hebrews put it this way: “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2 The Lord was able to despise the shame of being almost naked, disrespected, spat upon, and mocked while on the cross because HE knew by doing so it would lead to the salvation of many. As He hung on that cross He thought about the joy that would one day come from His incredible sacrifice. He thought about you and me and all those who would believe on His name. If Jesus Christ could endure the cross for us, surely we can endure “the thorn” for Him.
The apostle Paul accepted God’s will. He believed the Lord when He told him “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” 2nd Corinthians 12:9 Are you able to believe God’s grace is sufficient to help you endure and persevere when He decides not to remove the thorn? Do you accept His will not to remove it or do you continue to insist that HE does? When you understand that He’s not going to remove it, do you then seek to cultivate your healing on your own? I hope not. Unfortunately sometimes our greatest battle is getting our own will to properly align with the will of God.
Such was usually the case for me. I can be such a spoiled brat with my Daddy God. I’m so blessed by His goodness towards me. I know that I’m so loved, so adored, and so favored by Him that I really have a hard time accepting the difficult and challenging things from His hand. My response to “the thorn” was to fight. I’d fight to be free of it altogether. I’d fight to convince the Lord to allow my will to be done. I’d fight with all my might to control my circumstances in order to facilitate my own healing. All the while I’d become angry with the Lord for not giving me my way. Because of my rebellion I’d become distant from Him. As a result I’d wind up more miserable than ever! Eventually, thankfully, it would lead to my brokenness. Then I’d cry out to my God and every time He rescued me! One of the elders in my church recently sent us a devotional containing this poem that sums up the whole process I’d go through best (I guess I’m not alone):
With eager heart and will on fire
I fought to win my great desire:
“Peace shall be mine,” I said, but life
Grew bitter in the endless strife.
My soul was weary, and my pride
Was wounded deep. To heav’n I cried,
“God grant me peace, or I must die!”
The dumb stars glittered no reply.
Broken at last, I bowed my head,
Forgetting all myself, and said,
“Whatever comes His will be done.”
And in that moment, peace was won.
Ironside, H. A.
(I don’t like that he said “dumb” stars. “Brilliant stars” would have been so much better!)
Exactly! This is usually the process we tend to go through when we’re allowed to have a “thorn in our flesh”. It only prolongs us getting to the place the Lord wants us to get to. I now realize my fighting against God’s will never free me. It’s not until I fully surrender the matter in my heart with God that I’m free. As such, we should desire to respond to our “thorns” like Paul did. Once we understand that we’re indeed dealing with a “thorn” that has passed through our Lord’s nailed pierced hands, we should immediately accept it and embrace it. When the Lord told Paul His grace was sufficient for him, Paul responded “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2nd Corinthians 12:9b-10
Wow! Just look at how Paul is able to see the thorns in his life! Take a look at the list-weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and difficulties! Amazing! Do you endure and embrace your weaknesses? Do you see them as a vehicle to display the awesome strength of our God to all who are watching?
The thorn is there so that we can experience the all sufficient and sustaining power of God! The thorn is there to give us the privilege of proclaiming the power of Christ Jesus in our lives to others. Will you see your weaknesses as blessings which allows you to experience God in a way you’d never even imagined? Remember there is nothing the enemy can send that the Lord can’t use to strengthen us!
HEART TO HEART: GOD ALLOWS THE THORNS TO TRAIN, TRANSFORM, AND TEMPER US FOR HIS GLORY!