Getting Out of my Own Way

I’m short. For the most part, I don’t mind being short. But when I was growing up in a neighborhood full of bigger, older, meaner boys, being short was a real challenge. Especially when one of the boys’ favorite games involved out me at arm’s length and torturing me. I would swing my arms wildly, trying to make contact with my tormentor, but inevitably, I’d be at their mercy until older, bigger, and more merciful intervened.

In Chapter 8 of The Hiding Place, Corrie ten Boom says, “Perhaps only when human effort had done its best and failed, would God’s power alone be free to work.” (ebook location 2370)

So often, I spend my days, swinging my arms wildly at my challenges. I wear myself out but get nowhere. Maybe today is the day I should stop flailing about in the face of my tormentors, and instead, call out to the one who has the wisdom, strength, and mercy to intervene and heal.

This post is part of a weekly discussion on Corrie ten Boom’s classic, “The Hiding Place.” You do not have to read the book to weigh in on whatever topic is being discussed. However, if you have written a response to this week’s chapter, feel free to link it up below before you go visit Jason, my co-facilitator, at Connecting to Impact.