Every Rose has its Thorn

We have just celebrated the remembrance of the most powerful truth of the Christian faith. If you have been in a church this past weekend, you heard again of the crown of thorns that was painfully placed upon the Lord’s head as He completed His journey to the cross. We find amazing comfort that Jesus was resurrected and has triumphed over death. Yet, even just 48 hours after being reminded of the greatest gift ever given, we can be overwhelmed by the challenges we still face. How do we keep our focus on the victory of Christ as we live in this fallen world? Not everything in our lives was perfect at Easter… let alone two days later. Sometimes we struggle because we are reaping what we sowed. There are times, however, when we are struggling because of something completely beyond our doing or control.In the book of 2 Corinthians, the apostle Paul described that God had even given him a thorn. The thorn, Paul says, was given to him to keep him from becoming conceited. Paul hated the thorn. Paul begged God to remove it, but the answer was no.So, what are we to do if God has placed a painful circumstance in our life and He has chosen not to remove it? We must learn from Paul and follow these three steps…1. You Must Analyze the ThornWhen a painful circumstance arises in your life, your most natural response is to complain. But as Paul described in 2 Cor 12:7-10, he moved beyond the whining to honestly assess the situation. He saw that it was from the Lord and he even saw what God’s purpose was: to keep him from becoming conceited. God had amazing plans for Paul and knew that, if left to his own flesh, pride would prevent Paul from being all that God designed him to be.Step back from the pain and ask God, “What is the purpose of this pain?” Paul was honest about how much he hated it. You can be, too. God can handle our frustration as we analyze the thorn.2. You Must Accept God’s GraceGod’s response to Paul can be echoed over our own thorns. The Lord told Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Even if the answer is not what you want, God will give you what you need. The question is: Will you accept His grace?When you accept God’s grace, you must remember that God does not promise He will give the same grace to everyone around us for our unique thorn. I like to think of it as single size servings of grace. Someone else may not understand how you can look a trial in the eyes with peace. Do not allow that to distract you from daily accepting God’s grace.3. You Must Act DifferentlyPaul was honest with God, but then he chose to accept God’s grace. Paul’s famous words,[Because of God’s grace], “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.”We have 2 choices: we can wallow in self-pity and allow the thorn to eat away at our faith and our joy; or we can accept God’s grace so He can perfect His power in us. What will your choice be?