Many of us learned the “Jesus Loves Me” song as children, but the last part always bothered me: ”Jesus loves me! This I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to Him belong; They are weak but He is strong.” To me, displaying weakness seemed to contradict the very goal of competition.

As I was learning to compete in athletics, the idea of embracing weakness seemed ridiculous. I thought that I had to renounce all that I had learned in the gym in order to become weak. I mean, who has ever been chosen for a team for being the weakest player? Who breaks into a starting lineup because she is weaker than her teammates? I wanted to be strong and display that power for anyone who cared to watch.

So, as coaches who teach athletes to be stronger than their opponents, can we display weakness of any kind and still model a competitive and driven spirit? I’ve learned that the answer is yes. It starts with the reality that we find true freedom in Christ when we believe our weakness is an asset. When we admit our weakness to God, we rely on Him rather than on our own abilities. We are truly powerful when we become fully dependent on Him. In fact, becoming weak is a gift that better equips us to serve Him. In the process, we become more like Christ, who became weak on the cross for our sakes, that we might be strong in Him. This is weakness that leads to strength.

To be “pleased in weaknesses” is a call to surrender to our Creator, to allow Him to reign in our beings and to take hold of our hearts. He has given us every gift we possess—even the gift of weakness—as an opportunity to honor His name, not ours.