Matthew 6:30-33
30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
2 Corinthians 12:1-10
Paul's Vision and His Thorn
1I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. 2I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows. 3And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows— 4was caught up to paradise. He heard inexpressible things, things that man is not permitted to tell. 5I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses. 6Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say.
7To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 10That 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.
When I AM weak, then I AM strong...Who really believes this?...When we suffer like St. Paul was suffering, we want to rid ourselves of this weakness, and get on with life...But that does not always happen...Sometimes we have to live with that weakness, as St. Paul did...We have to keep asking God for strength to help us in our weakness...
People think weakness is a sign of well "weakness"...People do not like weakness...We fear it...We stay away from it...We run from it, we repress it...We work, exercise, and play- to keep away from weakness...We try to show others that we are not weak...Some parents when their children fall and/or get hurt, they want them to be "tough" and not feel their injury...Toughness is taught as good, crying is seen as a weakness and some view it as bad...When we feel bad, we do not cry, especially men...And many teach their children, this do not cry thinking, as crying maybe seen as a weakness...Some people do not even want to listen to another one's weakness...
If we are weak, can we be successful?...Let us consider One Man, and His life...Let us consider One, who all His life He would be a servant to others...Before He was born, a prophet named Isaiah called Him, not only a Righteous Servant, but a Righteous Servant who would suffer...His whole life He would be a Suffering Servant, as outlined in the Book of Isaiah chapter fifty three...This Man would be born in a manger...Surrounding His birth, would have been farm animals and the smell of a stable...His parents were poor and they lived in poverty raising Him...His father was poor, had no land to speak of, and He became a carpenter, like His father...He carried very little with Him,...He did not have material things to carry...He shunned richness and wealth, and taught against the love of money and material things...He preached a life of meekness, humbleness, and Truth...He never had a want of money or material things...
Is money and material things a part of success?...Would we call this Man's life a picture of success, today, with nothing owned to His name?...
He took a very simple approach to life...He was not diversified, but believed in a focused portfolio, with all His eggs in one basket...His life was total invested in God...
He taught us that when we really understand God and get our priorities, then we know about the true investments...Then God will be our number one priority in our lives...Everything else is next...When we have Him as the number one thing in our life, everything else that is next, will take care of itself...He tells us to first seek His kingdom (and especially after we find it), then all the other things that we worry about will take care of themselves...Money meant nothing to Him personally...What He teaches us about money is that it should be used to help the needy, and the poor...
Success may be derived from weakness, for when I AM weak then I AM strong...His humbleness, meekness, and weakness on the cross proves this...He could have came down off of the cross at anytime, at the blink of an eye, because He is Divine...But He died for each one of us, to save us from our sins that we commit...
Jesus is the most successful man to walk the earth...I think most Christians would agree with this...We know His life is about and was the greatest of successes, what do we think of most, when we think and judge success?...