A Thorn Of Humility - Paul

To keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.

2 Corinthians 12:7

Former baseball great Ralph Kiner had a great season for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1952. Unfortunately, the Pirates didn’t return the favor. They finished 42-122 and dead last in the National League.

When the season ended, Kiner approached Pirates general manager Branch Rickey and asked for a raise, reminding him that he had led the league with thirty-seven home runs.

“Where did we finish?” Rickey asked.

“Last,” Kiner replied.

“Well,” said Rickey, “we can finish last without you.”

There’s always something to humble even the most accomplished man.

The apostle Paul, a man of considerable humility, well understood the importance of keeping his pride in check. He actually thanked God for sending some unidentified problem—one he referred to as a “thorn”—to keep him in his place. Whatever Paul’s “thorn in [the] flesh” was, he continually thanked God for it because it reminded him that without the constant empowerment of God’s Holy Spirit, he had nothing to offer the Kingdom of God.

“That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses,” he wrote, “and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10).

It takes a lot of courage to thank God for something that appears to be a problem or hindrance, but that’s what Paul did. He understood that character qualities such as patience and humility don’t just happen; they develop over time, and often through difficult life experiences.

Do you have that kind of courage?

Instead of seeing your difficulties as hindrances to your life of faith, look at them as opportunities that God allows into your life to keep you humble. Let them remind you that your strength is in him alone.