Feeling Inadequate? You're Not Alone.

2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV But 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.

Without Christ, you are not enough.

Colossians 2:8-10 NLT Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. So you also are complete through your union with Christ …

When you believe you’re enough, you won’t seek the One who is.

Without Christ, We Are ...
•Dead in our sins (Ephesians 2:1)
•Without hope and without help (Ephesians 2:12)
•Foolish, deceived, and slaves to sin (Titus 3:3)
•Spiritually blind (1 John 2:11)
•Wretched and miserable (Romans 7:24)
•Ignorant and separated from the life of God (Ephesians 4:18)
•Objects of wrath, destined for destruction (Romans 9:22)

Romans 3:10, 12 NLT ... “No one is righteous—not even one. ...All have turned away … No one does good, not a single one.”

To fully treasure what you have in Christ, you need to remember what you were without Him.

Ephesians 2:1-5 NLT Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. ... All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else. But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)

2 Corinthians 3:4-5 ESV Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God ...

The Good News
•You’re helpless, but Jesus is your helper. (Hebrews 13:6)
•You’re weak, but Jesus is your strength. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
•You’re depressed, but Jesus is your hope. (2 Thessalonians 2:16)
•You’re exhausted, but Jesus is your rest. (Matthew 11:28)
•You’re anxious, but Jesus is your peace. (John 14:27)
•You’re struggling financially, but Jesus is your provider. (Philippians 4:19)
•You’re hurting, but Jesus is your comforter. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
•You’re in bondage, but Jesus is the Savior who sets you free. (John 8:36)

In what area of your life are you relying on yourself instead of God?

What is God calling you to do about it?

Jeremiah 33:3 NIV “Call to me and I will answer you ...”

Psalm 50:15 NIV“... call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you …”

Psalm 145:18 NIV The Lord is near to all who call on him …

Psalm 86:7 NIV When I am in distress, I call to you ...

Romans 10:13 NIV “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

In what area of your life are you loving yourself more than loving God and loving others?

What is God calling you to do about it?

2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV But 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.