When you live amidst a cloud of some kind, for me it is physical pain and the emotional strain when parenting gets tough, it is so easy to forget how blessed you are. I love how these verses make it clear that contentment is a gift from God. My ESV Study Bible note for this verse says, "The one to whom God grants contentment will not allow the darker realities of human existence to overshadow divinely bestowed blessings." However, I can still choose to be bitter and dwell on the dark cloud above me which then robs me of such joy.
Joni Eareckson Tada has this gift of contentment. She has been an inspiration and encouragement to me to keep seeking the things above in the midst of dwelling with the things of this broken world. Lately, I've had to listen and re-listen to this talk she gave at the True Woman '08 Conference. Actually, she couldn't appear at the conference due to pain and had it pre-recorded. Her heartfelt disappointment in not being there was clear but she also trusted God in the change of plans. This simple fact did more for my heart than I can say. If you can take the time to actually watch it you will be blessed by the tenderness in her face and one of her illustrations needs to be seen (her earrings).
My favorite quote:
"A real stone like this one can take a good scrubbing. Jewelry is not as delicate as we think. So God gets out His toothbrush and says in Zechariah chapter 13, verse 9, 'I will refine them like silver, and I will test them like gold.'
That’s me. What can I say? I long, I desire, I want to be a jewel that does not cringe if God chooses to give my soul a hard scrubbing every now and then.
Now, I’m not glorifying the suffering it takes to polish my faith. But ladies, I am glorifying the God whose image is reflected on the surface of any smile, my smile, that might be hard fought for through pain or problems. If you want God’s glory to be your shine, girls, it will be on His terms. His glory will be the glow of His godliness in your life, His patience, and perseverance." ~ Joni
Joni's God's Jewels
I relate to her and am thankful for God's sanctification process, the scrubbing in my life. 
I've just been given a new bead for my bracelet by my mom-in-law who also loves Joni's talk and will represent the jewel I am in God's crown. The scrubbing brings a shine. Joni also said, "If you really want to be like Christ, then you’ve got to learn to hate sin, because to be like Jesus is to be made sin-less."
2 comments:
Dear Amy,
Did you get to read my recent blog post entitled The Broken Places? In that post, I shared about the work that brokenness has done in my life.
I wrote there that it was the pain and the grief over my husband's death that have broken my heart the most, of all the painful things I have gone through in my life. Cloud and Townsend said that grief over the death of a loved one is also the one pain that heals the most.
There have been times that I have thought of you and the pain you are going through, I don't have any idea what it must be like. It's a kind of dying too.
I have also wondered what people who watch their loved ones go through a slow death...losing them to amnesia, or dementia, or Alzheimer's disease... or even just see them remain in coma for years, not dead, but not alive either... I cannot even argue that their pain must be equal to losing a loved one through physical death.
A few years ago, God spoke clearly these words to me which have somehow strengthened me, even as I think of you and other people I have come to love, and know that they go through a thousand deaths daily, even including myself... and this is what God said, "I am the righteous judge who will even out the score in the end."
We may not have it all explained in this life...but there is a day coming when ... every tear will be wiped away from our eyes.
May these words comfort you today, even I have been greatly encouraged by your post.
Much love
Lidj
Lidj,
Your beautiful and heartfelt comment encourages my soul today.
The small suffering I'm facing compared to what many in our church family is facing makes me want to remain silent. I'm trying to walk their roads' with them in prayer primarily and in some tangible ways when my health allows.
You have said we can all have a thousand death's daily. I fully agree and live this. But then I think about the past few weeks. A dear man from our church died suddenly & was away from his family at the time. And just this week a young couple gave birth to their first child who lived for about 50 minutes. And then there are many who have been suddenly hospitalized. And at the memorial service for the man I mentioned I talked with another who is watching her father deny himself life because he just lost his wife who had Alzheimer's and whose memory was gone for over a year before she physically died. Then there are two special families that are dealing with stage 4 cancers and the struggles with chemo. And then the young father with Lou Gehrig's disease that tried a new treatment but had to have it removed due to infection. And I know I'm forgetting others. All of these church family sufferings are carried in my heart while my dear mom-in-law visits with her own stage 4 cancer. We had a great family visit and you learn to cherish every little memory.
There is so much suffering around me that I often down play my own and beat myself up. But, God has used my pain to at least walk toward others with some empathy.
I'm rejoicing with you that our righteous judge will someday put it all to rights and even out the score in the end. May we seek to encourage those around us as they persevere through deep, dark days in this life.
Your walk through your grief touches this pastor's wife's heart. I'm in the know of the struggles of so many but can do very little. Your presence in my life spurs me on to love and continued good deeds. I will re-read the post you mentioned.
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