I’ve had a few days since I wrote my sad post. Yesterday I was feeling overwhelmed, as more emotions have come up.
This morning I was on my knees asking for his grace to forgive those who have hurt me.
In my experience, forgiveness comes in steps.
We forgive.
Then it hurts again.
And we forgive again.
The healing process is sometimes slow, step by step.
“When you come to where you’re broken within, the light meets the dark.”
We had such a beautiful service this morning about trials and adversity. The worship songs had me in tears.
Trials reveal entitlement in our hearts. It’s a good reminder to be humble, and not to have high expectations. We are not entitled to an easy life. Let’s not be surprised when we experience adversity.
Christians still have trials. But we have God’s strength to get us through them, and we can be thankful for the refinement process that is making us more holy.
“If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31)
But just like Paul and Silas, we can praise God even in the middle of chaos, when the outcome is still uncertain. Your praise at midnight will give strength to somebody else at their midnight.
“Rain came and wind blew
But my house was built on You
And I’m safe with You
I’m gonna make it through.”
I am nervous about what’s in my future. But Christ is my foundation. He is my strength. “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances….I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (Philippeans 4:10-13)
“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed…Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9, 16-18)
Here’s one more song. A little different. The Supertones are rock ska Christian music. But here’s a great song about how we need to praise God in good times as well as bad.
All I Possess 