Struck Down but Not Destroyed

The dictionary defines resilience as "the power or ability of a material to return to its original form after being bent, compressed, or stretched" 1 -an enviable description for anyone who sets out on a life-long mission.However, in 2 Corinthians 4, Paul describes Christians as clay pots, humble vessels that display God's power and not their own.Paul's words describe the kind of paradoxical resilience that keeps missionaries moving forward: "We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed (2 Cor 4:8-9)."Christian resilience is more than just bouncing back after a hard hit.It is the transformation of one's character into something even better than he started with, precisely through those hard hits.It is the broken pieces of the clay pot, re-formed and held together by Christ Himself.Through the cracks, between pieces, the light of Christ shines through.God is intentional in making his people this way: "We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. . .so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh (2 Cor 4: 7, 11b).