Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
Romans 5:3-5, NIV
Personally, I have failed to consider any suffering as a pure joy to my personal growth and maturity. It is such a battle between having faith in God and blaming God for all the things that have gone wrong. How can one really take pure joy in suffering then if suffering in itself is nothing but pure pain? Prayers of "God... WHY?" are constantly echoed in my head. Even though it is obvious that these trials will build character, how can we see through all the troubles and trust God with the situation?
This begs the question of your faith. Indeed, in the past few weeks, I have discovered that I am not as close to God as I thought I was. The hope that I have believed in "disappointed" me. Things went wrong and I felt nothing but grief and sorrow.
But I am clearly missing the point. I was believing in the wrong sort of hope. I believed in the hope that I thought was good for me, not the hope that God had for me. I have failed to realize that it is God that is pulling the strings for my own good. Whatever I am doing now, I need to realize that my relationship with God is the most important thing I need to work on right now. I need to pray and read scripture and fellowship with other believers and other things as well.
I look at the past now and see how God has changed me and I find it quite impressive, but theres so much more to do. So I will continue to allow Him to lead me on. Praise the Lord.
Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment