Be thankful to the God who made you poor, or sick, or sad, because Jesus uses all of these things to change your spirit and turn you to himself. The Lord’s mercy often rides to the door of our hearts on the black horse of affliction. Jesus uses the whole range of our experience to wean us from earth and woo us to heaven. Christ is exalted to the throne of heaven and earth so that he can use all the powers at his disposal to graciously soften hard hearts through repentance.
