Chuck Colson knows success. He is the founder of Prison Fellowship, an organization with tens of thousands of volunteers ministering to prisoners, victims, and their families. He is a nationally syndicated columnist. He is a recipient of the $1 million Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion. In addition, he was a Captain in the U.S. Marine Corps, served as Special Counsel to President Richard Nixon, and has written over 50 books. But his greatest contributions were not the result of his successes; they grew out of failure. Colson was imprisoned in 1974 for his part in the Watergate burglary that eventually ended the Nixon presidency. Like Humpty Dumpty, he had a great fall. In his brokenness he invited God to put him back together again. God answered Colson’s invitation, repaired the shattered pieces, and turned failure into success.
One day while waiting to speak in a prison, Mr. Colson let his mind drift to his prison days. “All at once,” he said, “I realized it was not my success God had used to enable me to help those in this prison, or in hundreds like it. My greatest humiliation—being sent to prison—was the beginning of God’s greatest use of my life. He chose the one experience in which I could not glory for His glory.”
God has a way of showing up in our humiliating moments. Paul discovered this when facing a crushing weakness:
Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, "My gracious favor is all you need. My power works best in your weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may work through me. (2 Corinthians 12:8-9 NLT)
Are finances tight? Has a marriage gone south? Are you in a quandary and unsure what to do? Are you grieving over lost opportunities with your children? Have you made a big mistake? Have you recently told yourself: “Now you’ve really done it!”? Have some words snuck out of your mouth and now it is too late to take them back? God’s power can overcome any weakness.
I have read, “It is the nature of God to make something out of nothing; therefore, when anyone is nothing, God may yet make something out of him.” How true!
STAY FOCUSED TODAY: Invite God into your humiliating experience. He can make something out of your nothing!