“My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” — 2 Corinthians 12:9
Advent pulls us back to a simple truth: God meets us most deeply where we finally stop pretending we’re strong.
Weakness is not failure. Weakness is an open door. It is the place where our striving ends and God’s sufficiency begins. It’s where grace gets in. It’s where Christ becomes our strength instead of our self-reliance. It’s where God’s power rests on us, not because we are capable, but because He is faithful.
The manger itself is a picture of surrendered weakness — fragile, vulnerable, overlooked — and yet it is the very place where God chose to reveal His power and His salvation.
In Advent, we remember that God does not despise weakness.
He inhabits it.
He fills it.
He transforms it.
And through it, He brings forth life.
Surrender is not giving up.
Surrender is trusting that God can carry what we cannot.
“All God’s giants have been weak men who did great things for God because they reckoned on His being with them.” — Hudson Taylor
Reflection: Where is God inviting you to stop striving and start surrendering?
Prayer: Lord, I confess the places where I’m trying to be strong on my own. Teach me the freedom of surrender. Let Your grace meet me where my strength ends. Make Your power known in my weakness and Your presence my confidence. Help me release what I cannot carry, and rest in the sufficiency of Christ. Amen.
When God Came Near 