Thankful for the Double Blessing through the Trials of Life
Today I choose to be thankful for the trials in life. You read that correctly.
I am thankful for the valleys for without the valleys I would never truly appreciate the view of the mountain top.
The last week has brought much sadness as I have been grieving the loss of my brother-in-law and wearing the weight of my family’s sadness- as I often do. I was reminded today of the truth of being blessed through our trials.
A very wise man told me that even through our darkest times, even when we least expect it, it is often then that we are being a light for others. My wise counsel reminded me of the Job’s journey. Throughout the story of Job, we are reminded constantly that although he faced many trials he was rewarded with double blessings. We hear so often of the outcome of his journey- the other side of the rainbow, the grass on the other side of the fence. However, if we read carefully we will see that during Job’s trials he was weary; he was burdened; he was at the his breaking point. He cried out to the Lord- I can’t do this anymore, make it stop! If we were real with ourselves and with others we would see that we are much like Job... we all cry out when we have had enough at some point. What we must remember is that people see us even then. Our actions are so important when we are in the midst of the storm. It is okay to cry out, but we must cry out to God. Must must lean on God.
My prayer every day is “Lord, break me and build me up again, so that my conduct, my speech and my character reflect You. Make me a woman of integrity, humility, patience, passion, obedience, and courage. Give me unspeakable joy in all that I do so that I can be the image of you for everyone I meet. Be at the center of it all Lord and let my destiny be fulfilled in you.”
Notice that nowhere do I ask for the Lord to make sure I have no troubles but instead I ask Him to help me to have joy in everything I do. Even through my trials I ask the Lord to give me joy so that I can share His light. I never thought about how I cry out during my times of trial, but my wise counsel made me consider this.
During some of my most difficult times over the past few years as I have been crying out to God I have found myself buried in devotions and sharing tidbits as a way of trying to remind myself that I am still here- whether anyone else sees them or not. What I was reminded by this very wise man was that during this time, my tidbits had been noticed by him while he was going through a particularly difficult time. As I thanked my wise counsel for sharing this, he told me “don’t stop sharing your double blessings.” I left with bigger tears than I came in with and a heart overflowing. My prayer to be used by God had been answered and I didn’t even know it and my wise counsel has been used by God more than he will ever know. ❤️
Thank you Cory!