Thorny troubles?

So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:7-8 

When I think of a thorn in the flesh, I immediately surmise something bad, hard, or painful. Yet, the Apostle Paul sees his thorn in the flesh as a blessing, God’s way of keeping conceit at bay and humility ever present. He was a generously gifted person, someone whom the Lord Jesus had revealed Himself in such profound ways that Paul was unable in some cases to wrap words around or even have a release from Holy Spirit to share. Yet he suffered. Paul suffered thirty-nine lashes five times, was beaten with rods three times, stoned three times, and shipwrecked three times. In addition to these afflictions from others, he also experienced a physical ailment. Like a thorn, small, out of sight, pesky with the potential for infection and more severe pain. Like Jesus in the garden, Paul pleaded for the Lord to extract his thorn three times. God said no, “My grace is sufficient for My power will be made perfect in weakness.” Delivered by Satan’s messenger, but God used it for good. Paul learned in his pain that humility boasts of weaknesses while pride boasts of strength.

How can pain in our bodies be a blessing? A rose is one of God’s most compelling creations; its sight and smell ignite pleasure and praise, yet the stem lifting up its beauty is adorned with thorns. The beauty of our Creator's handiwork is on display not where pain is always absent but where pain is ever present, sometimes intentionally inflicted. As Paul describes, thorns are meant to be like trusses that bind our hearts, minds, emotions, and bodies closer to Christ. Unchecked egos run over relationships, taking for granted God’s blessings. So, in the Lord’s wisdom, He sometimes allows evil influences to keep a person’s conceit in check. What’s meant for bad, God uses for good. Spurgeon describes the need for restraints to protect us from pride and conceit:

Let us never desire to be rid of those restraints which God has seen fit to lay upon us—they are more necessary than we have ever dreamed of. Remember how the vine, when bound to the stake which upheld it, judged itself a martyr and longed to be free, but when it saw the wild vine at its feet, rotting in the dampness and pining amidst the heat and producing no fruit—it felt how necessary were its bonds if its clusters were ever to ripen! Be content, dear brothers and sisters, to keep the thorn in the flesh if it saves you from being exalted above measure!

God’s grace is sufficient in whatever circumstance you are experiencing. You cannot control another person’s behavior, but God can give you the grace to approach another’s hurt with a humble spirit and empathic heart. Physical pain may be overwhelming you, but as you commiserate with Christ in His fellowship of suffering, He extends grace, mercy, and comfort in your time of need. A thorn in the flesh has an expiration date, but God’s grace never spoils or runs out. Your body of flesh will one day enjoy a glorified body with God, but while you are in the body, you can pray for God to bring grace and healing to your tired fretful flesh. In your weakness, He becomes strong, so your body becomes a living sacrifice to glorify your Creator.