Devotionals for the Heart: Life Lessons from the kitchen and dish duty

Strength in Weakness
A devotional by Mirachelle Canada

‘But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, 

for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 

Therefore I will boast more gladly of my weakness, 

so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.’ 

–2 Corinthians 12:9 (ESV)

Have you ever considered your greatest weakness could be God’s greatest strength within you?

As a child, one of my key strengths could also be my binding weakness. I was the youngest of my siblings and fiercely independent. I preferred to do things by myself. Case in point was during the nightly duties after dinner when I was to help my older brother and sister clean up the table and the kitchen. I would pick up my dishes and utensils from the table and carry them to the kitchen sink, but beyond that I milled around and eventually left the kitchen. My siblings would complain that I wasn’t helping them or doing my part. I would get mad, they would retaliate, and yelling would ensue.

One night, my wise mother decided to assign me the entire kitchen clean-up. To do it all by myself. After all the dishes were brought in, she tied an apron around my waist, stood me up on a stool in front of the sink, and let me go to town cleaning up everything, even the pots and pans. Much to everyone’s surprise I wore a huge smile on my face and cleaned with glee. There is even a picture of me to commemorate the event that is in our photo album to this day.

Rather than scold me or let my frustrated siblings accuse me of wrongdoing, my mother found a way to empower my independent nature. She knew I wasn’t being willful, that I could and did want to help, I just didn’t know how to contribute when there were too many people in the mix. I wanted to be the cook, and there were literally too many cooks in the kitchen. In order for me to succeed and not offend, I would have to learn how to use my independence wisely and carefully.

The apostle Paul represents a strong character with an independent spirit. One that God had to tear down and build up again by placing a thorn in his side because Paul was a persecutor of Christians before he became a believer and follower of Jesus. In 2 Corinthians 12:8-9, Paul pleads for the thorn’s removal, but God tells him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” God knew Paul’s potential and endurance even though most would have perceived his past as a disqualifier for him to author a majority of the New Testament. It was because of his confessions of weakness and desire to know and be one with God that he became known as a champion of Christ. God uses Paul’s weakness to show us an example of His great love and forgiveness of sins, but also to show us the full strength of someone’s character when he is fully reliant on God.

I am blessed to say that I eventually learned how to use my independence to benefit others rather than go it alone all the time. It can get very lonely on an island by yourself. Yet, like Paul, yielding my independent nature to God has also allowed Him to take me places I never could have imagined and further than I ever dreamed. According to 1 Corinthians 2:9 (ESV): But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” 

Yielding our weaknesses to God opens the doors wide for His strength to be made complete in us. In this His love, power, and grace we can know no bounds. And like a proud parent, He will smile upon us as we do His will with freedom and glee.

Do you have a strength that others may perceive as a weakness?

Let’s Pray: Dear Lord, I thank you for my uniqueness and how you have created me differently for your purpose. I count it a blessing that you have put a specific character trait in me that is made strong even when I am weak. Guide me and my giftings with your love, power, and grace. That in all I do, I will honor you and who you created me to be. In Jesus’s Name I pray. Amen.

~*~
Author Bio:

Mirachelle Canada is a writer, playwright, screenwriter, and theatre director/producer from Northern Virginia, where she teaches television production at her high school alma mater. 

She earned her Master of Fine Arts in Script & Screenwriting from Regent University and is an alumnus of Act One: Hollywood Film & Television Writing Program.

Mirachelle is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, American Fiction Writers Virginia Chapter, The Jerry Jenkins Writers Guild, and Your Novel Blueprint.

She is currently working on her first historical fiction novel set during WWII.

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Connect with Mirachelle:
Website: www.mirachellecanada.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mirachellecanada/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/miracan

Devotionals for the Heart: Dependence

Declaration of Dependence
A devotional by Glynis Becker

“From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint;

Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

For You have been a refuge for me,

A tower of strength against the enemy.

Let me dwell in Your tent forever;

Let me take refuge in the shelter of Your wings.”

— Psalm 61:2-4 (NASB)

Do you remember being a child, wishing you could grow up so you wouldn’t have people telling you what to do? 

Of course, as adults, we realize that although we have more freedom than we did as children, we are not as free as we probably dreamed we would be. We tell ourselves we can do just about anything if it doesn’t hurt someone else. We stake our claim as independent creatures. But even as we say it I don’t think any of us really believe that’s completely true, do we?

We are dependent on all kinds of things: our health, our skill level, our intelligence, where we live, our finances, our families, our employers, the weather. Many of those things we have no control over. We aren’t really independent at all.

As Christians we should be even less independent, or at the very least, less dependent on ourselves and our own strength. Dependence on God is where we need to start.

When I hear the word ‘declaration,’ being an American, I immediately go to the phrase “Declaration of Independence.” That was a collective stand taken by a nation to say what they believed, what they wanted, and what they were willing to risk to gain it.

In Psalm 61, and so many of the other Psalms that David wrote, we see him declaring what we believes to be true of God as well as what is his own place in dependence on Him. He declares that God is “the rock that is higher than I am” and that He is a “refuge” and a “tower of strength.” Reminding himself of those things when life was good gave him a sure foundation in the days of difficulty, fear, and adversity.

Next David asks God for what he wants: “Let me live in your tent forever.” He knows he is dependent on God for his life, his well-being, and all of his blessings. He wants to be near God, sheltered by His strong arm and His boundless love.

I do not attend a liturgical church and this is not meant as a critique of contemporary versus traditional kinds of worship, but I firmly believe that there is something powerful about a congregation standing together to recite a creed or an affirmation that has been repeated by countless generations over thousands of years. The best of those creeds guide us to state what we believe about God, Who He is, and who we are in relation to Him.

I’d like to make it a practice to occasionally, if not every day, state what I believe about God, what I expect of Him and of myself in relation to how I love Him and the people around me.

I’m ready to make my own Declaration of Dependence. Is anybody with me?

My Prayer: Dear Father (God), make me aware of You today, in this moment, and remind me that You are everything I need. Remind me that any strength or skill I have is a blessing from You and that relying on You is the only way I will find freedom and peace. In Your Son’s precious name I pray, Amen.

~*~
Author Bio:

Glynis Becker writes devotions and inspirational fiction, hoping someday to have a published novel on her resume. 

She has co-written several screenplays, including the film Sinking Sand, available on DVD and digital streaming.

Glynis, whose childhood was spent all over the country as an Air Force brat, has called South Dakota home for many years, along with her husband and two teenage children.

When she’s not writing or reading, she is watching more television than she should and crocheting. You can find her at www.glynisbecker.com.