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January 30 - February 3, 2023
Yes, I pray that my pain might be removed, that it might cease; but more so, I pray for the strength to bear it, the grace to benefit from it, and the devotion to offer it up to God as a sacrifice of praise.
He has chosen not to heal me, but to hold me.
Normal day, let me be aware of the treasure you are.… Let me not pass you by in quest of some rare and perfect tomorrow. One day I shall dig my nails into the earth, or bury my face in my pillow, or stretch myself taut, or raise my hands to the sky and want, more than all the world, your return.
Nowadays, the real question, of course, is not whether God can heal or does heal; it is whether or not God wills to heal all those who truly come to Him in faith.
God reserves the right to heal or not … as He sees fit.
at the end of the day, it’s not a question of who has the most faith, but what God in His wisdom, love, and sovereignty chooses to do.
“In the process of my pursuit, I just ate God up. I made it my goal to simply delight myself in Him. And not with the purpose of holding back on a couple of desires I’d hoped He would quickly fulfill once I delighted myself in Him. No, I didn’t center on what God could do for me. Not how He could please me, but how I could please Him.
sometimes He delivers us from the storm, and at other times He delivers us through the storm.
And what is His will? That you and I be in the best position, the best place, the timeliest circumstance in which God can be glorified the most.
As with the apostle Paul, who had his request for healing denied, the Lord Jesus will give an extra measure of His presence and grace instead.
“A man’s steps are directed by the LORD. How then can anyone understand his own way?” (Prov. 20:24).
If we allow it, suffering will lead us to the bank of the stream, where we can always find a long, cold drink of the refreshing grace of the Lord Jesus.
“You know, sometimes it is the artist’s task to find out how much music you can still make with what you have left.”
In other words, when there is no light by which to read the music, those who know their God by heart play on.
to be confronted with affliction is a reminder that something immense and cosmic is at stake: a heaven to be reached, a hell to be avoided, and a life on earth to be lived seriously and circumspectly.
Give gratitude in the midst of hardship, and you’ll find it will be like pouring out perfume on the Lord Himself. It’ll be a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving,
Sometimes I look into the future and just feel … overwhelmed. Try as I might, I can’t seem to see beyond my fears. The path ahead of me seems fogged in by anxiety. You know how it goes. Sometimes all it takes is a phone call, email, or piece of bad news to send you off the path of faith into the shadows of worry and doubt.
Trusting God has nothing to do with following your feelings. Give thanks that He is sovereign. Give thanks that He is in control. Give thanks that He’s planning it all for your good—for your family’s good—which ultimately will be all to His glory.
The threefold biblical command (because that’s what it is, and nothing less) to be joyful, pray always, and give thanks will lead to a clearer understanding of where God is leading you and what He wants you to do next.
But the lure to know more and more about your problem, and the lack of desire to know God more and more in the midst of your problem … well, that’s a clear indication that your faith is becoming diminished.
Let us know … and let us press on to know the Lord better and better.
Don’t let this thing fill up your whole horizon. Don’t let your anxieties swallow you up or drain your faith dry. Rather, stand firm and take action. Take it as an opportunity to do a little research of your own into God’s Word. Compare Bible verses with each other; investigate the examples of Paul or Joseph or Daniel or Peter and how they dealt with bad news and suffering in their lives.
