How was God's grace sufficient for Paul in his ministry?
God told Paul, "My grace is sufficient for thee," and it carried him through his entire ministry despite shipwrecks, beatings, hunger, cold, and nakedness. Paul prayed three times for the affliction to depart, but God did not heal him; instead, God's strength was made perfect in Paul's weakness.
Les explains that Paul besought the Lord three times that the affliction might depart, but God did not heal him of that malady. Instead, God said, "My grace is sufficient for thee," and that grace carried Paul all the way through his ministry—through shipwrecks, beatings, hunger, cold, and nakedness. God's strength is made perfect in weakness, and believers are to rest on that same sufficiency, knowing God will take them through whatever He sees fit and be with them when they reach the other side. Les also notes God chose not the great, wealthy, or kings, but the commonplace, those who had nothing in their flesh to offer.