We often have a hard time hearing what God has to say to us.

One reason for this is what He wants us to understand is often counter to our natural thinking – 1 Cor 1:18-19 says that the “word of the cross” (God’s message of forgiveness and the way to true life) is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the cleverness of the clever I will set aside.”

When we rely on our own wisdom, we fail to see the wisdom and the power of God. That does not mean we should not think. The Bible tells us to love God with all our mind (Matt 22:37). It means that we need help seeing the truth that God wants us to live out.

The Bible is full of paradox. A paradox is a statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd, but in reality expresses a deep truth. When it comes to living life well, Jesus taught, “whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it (Matt 16:25). What feels like a path to life for us is actually a path to death. What feels like a path to death for us can actually lead to life.

Jesus is not talking about living a life of self-destruction. In fact, what we see as self-destruction in others is actually them pursuing what feels like life. Drugs, alcohol, affairs, pursuit of fame and money, these are all pursued because in the beginning, they feel like life but in the end they produce death. Surrendering our lives to God, in loving service to Him and other people may not seem like the path to life to our natural minds, but in the end we find out it is.

One of the great paradoxes in the Bible is found in our relationship with Him. 1 Cor 1:27 tells us that, “God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong.”

To truly experience the power of God in our lives, we must get in touch with our weakness, our brokenness. Our own natural response to weakness is to deny it, hide it, or work to get rid of it. We plead with God to take it away. Paul did this but God told him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness (2 Cor 12:9-10).”

This is the paradox, we must face our brokenness and let God into it, to experience His power. Our pride and desire for power work against us. Paul discovered this and wrote, “most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me ... for when I am weak, then I am strong.”

• Greg Shellborn is Pastor at Maple Ridge Vineyard.