Trials & Blessings

Trials. We all have been through them. Or we are in the midst of them. Or they are coming.

It.is.a.fact.of.life.

Trials are hard. Trials are tough. Trials are heart breaking. Trials are part of the Potter shaping us, the clay, into what HE wants us to be. Many times, we have to be shaped over and over and over.

Too often, we think that trials are abnormal. A dear, wise friend reminded me that this is actually the normal part of the Christian life.  We are here for a purpose. We are here to bring glory to God and to tell others about Him and His great love. He has a purpose for our lives. In order to be used, we need to be shaped, go through the Refiner’s Fire, be on the Potter’s wheel. He has to shape, mold and get rid of the rough edges.

Oh, how we resist this process. The breaking, the bending, the heat of the trials. We fight, we resist, we resent, instead of acknowledging that God has a plan. Give it to Him. He, the One who created us, loves us and has a plan for us, much greater than what we plan for ourselves.

Most of us have lived long enough to know that when we try to take charge of our lives, we mess it up…really mess it up. We are human and we can really cause some big messes. The older I get, the more I realize that I know very little.  I think I have things all figured out, in my own strength. Then I find out how wrong I am.

Sometimes I have to get to the end of my rope to remember that I can ONLY depend on Him…no one else. Others will fail us. We fail others. God will always be there. Even if we walk away. He is a loving Father.

There are blessings in trials. We sometime get so caught up in the trial or the way others have wronged us or why aren’t things going better for me, that we take our eyes off of Jesus.  When Peter took his eyes off of Jesus, he plunged into the water. The same is true for us. We find ourself drowning. He is there to lift us up and rescue us.

“There is a depth of intimacy with God that can only be known through suffering. There is a reliance on Him that can only be experienced when everything else around my soul seems to give way. And if that’s what it takes to make this stubborn child cling to that old rugged cross, you can have your prosperity. I’d rather have Jesus.” Laura Story

I don’t want to miss the blessings by being caught up in myself and my problems.

Even if you are experiencing a trial, you still have much to be thankful for…although it may not seem like it and much to do to bless others. And when we try to serve, love and bless others…we are to do it for God’s glory, not because it makes us look or feel good. Do it for Him.

Keep a record of what God has done for us, for His blessings and love. When we have a grateful heart, we focus less on our problems. Keep a journal.  Look back often on His amazing gifts in your life.

I hope this song will encourage you as it has me.  If you are viewing this in a reader or email, click here.

I don’t know what you are facing right now, but I will be praying for you, sweet friends, because life is hard and we never know what others are facing.

{HUGS!}

Linked with: A Holy Experience, The Modest Mom, The Better Mom, Monday’s Musings