On Finding the Strength to Be Weak

There's some peace in accepting and admitting you weren't built to be strong—not on your own at least.

I often smile a pained smile whenever someone says, “Hey, Obi. I bet you went to church today, so how was the service?” And I confess that I actually didn’t go to church that day and that I’ve grown more distant from God than I’d care to admit.

Then, they talk about how strong I must be to be able to teach, edit articles, stay in touch with my friends, and keep a glass-half-full attitude despite my lack of intimate fellowship with God.

Like, me?

Strong?

Hehehe. If only you knew.

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Honestly, I don’t consider it a sign of strength to strive to continue living while being distant from God.

Because as hard as that is, it’s still much easier than walking back to God, tail between your legs, and asking for His help and forgiveness.

And you’re absolutely right.

Reconciling with God shouldn’t be the harder choice, but when you realize it’s the one option that involves admitting your mistakes, weaknesses, helplessness, and hopelessness to the very God, whom and whose unconditional love you drew away from, it’s easy to see why people would rather do anything else but this.

Take it from someone who was once an agnostic and now a Christian who has pointlessly tried, time and again, to do life alone when I say that we are not built to be strong apart from God.

To believe otherwise or even try isn’t a sign of strength, resilience, or incredible willpower.

Rather, it’s a sign of pride because it shows we overestimate our ability to manage our lives independently, underestimate Christ’s sovereignty and boundless love for us, and, by so doing, insult His finished work on the Cross.

It’s like choosing to plant yams and starve for eight months until they mature when someone has freely offered to sponsor your feeding every day throughout your lifetime.

Why, then, do we choose to suffer needlessly, especially when we know we’ll eventually grow weary and still accept the same offer we shunned earlier?

Friends, I have tasted the height of God’s love (that is, Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross because nothing will ever beat that).

And believe me when I say that once you taste God’s love in full measure, nothing else truly satisfies.

Absolutely NOTHING.

Every Christian is like a fish swimming in the river of God’s grace and love, where His Word and guidance sustain them. Sometimes, we may wander ashore and flop further away from the river, and everything might seem okay on the surface for a while. But that’s often because we’re still being sustained by the nourishment we soaked up while we were yet in the river. Eventually, we will suffocate and have to go BACK to the river because it’s our ONLY source of life.

In moments like this, when you’ve grown apart from God, the only strength you need is the strength to swallow your pride, admit your weaknesses, surrender control to God, and humbly rely on His love, strength, and grace, quite like the tax collector in one of Jesus’ parables (Luke 18:9—14).

There’s a reason Christ encourages us to be more like children—humble, trusting, vulnerable, and, above all, dependent.

As you’ll learn if you haven’t already, intimacy and fellowship with God are most beautiful and fulfilling when you let God be God, your father, and relate to Him only as a child would—humbly and dependently.

Before we part ways today, I would like to share a video with you:

One Question to Reflect On

• Search your heart and current lifestyle. Based on what you’ve read and watched so far, what specific changes will you make today?

  (For me, it was studying at least a chapter of the Bible each day and praying, especially when I didn’t feel motivated to.)

A Few Things That Blessed Me This Week

• “Never Going Back” by United Pursuit feat. Brock Human. Listen on YouTube Music or Spotify.

• “Be Still” by Hillsong Worship. Listen on YouTube Music or Spotify.

• “Broken Vessels (Amazing Grace)” by Hillsong Worship. Listen on YouTube Music or Spotify.

• “God Only Knows” by for KING & COUNTRY. Listen on YouTube Music or Spotify.

• “In Christ Alone/The Solid Ground” by Travis Cottrell. Listen on YouTube Music or Spotify.

• John 17 (I recommend you not just read this chapter but also study it and soak up the lessons)

Heads-Up on a Possible Update!

A friend who reads this newsletter suggested a wonderful idea—creating a podcast so subscribers could “listen” to the newsletter when they don’t have the strength (or patience) to read.

Interestingly, I’ve been toying with the idea of adding a voiceover feature rather than a full podcast for the same reason.

By God’s grace, I should unroll this feature in the next few weeks—so stay tuned!

Now, I’m pretty sure you already know this, but I’ll just throw it in for good measure: please, feel free to suggest any ideas you might have regarding this newsletter.

While I can’t promise to incorporate every single suggestion, I can promise to think it through before making a decision.

So, if you’ve got any ideas (or simply want to talk), you can always send me an email at obinnaanyaibe@substack.com.

Until next week, do take care!