We learn lessons and grow spiritually from each trial we experience in life. Some are easy and make us chuckle; others are traumatic, and we cry each time we remember them. Yet, God always proves Himself faithful to us through each one of them.
Here are some of mine:
1. When I was a child, my aunt's home burned TWICE, and I will never forget the trauma, stench, and destruction that the fires caused her and my uncle and cousins ... a horrid experience at any age and any time in our life.
Now, I am very careful to adhere to safety measures and to keep "escape" routes clear in every home in which I live. I also want to help anyone in our community to recover when they have similar trials.
2. In my 22nd year of marriage, my former husband decided that there was no option for us but divorce. A year earlier, he struggled with his faith and said he would no longer be a Christian. Then, the next year, he proclaimed that he was setting me free to marry a Christian man.
At the time, I could not see how this could possibly be a blessing; but when I look back at my life since his decision, I see that God had better things in store for me through the new Christian man that He brought into my life.
3. I totaled two cars in my lifetime: in the first I even flipped the car upside down, and did not suffer a scratch, bruise, or break from that horrid experience. In the second accident, I broke 11 ribs and my little finger, punctured a lung, had half a face full of glass, and a concussion.
In the second accident, I was only hospitalized for one night while my lung completely healed overnight, I never took one pain pill because God miraculously took away all the pain, and although I looked like Frankenstein’s sister, my fiancé’s love for me increased rather than decreased.
I learned through this experience, that God is in control even during traumatic matters, and He uses them for His glory, to prove His love for us, and to do great and mighty things for us.
4. Our Illinois yard is full of dandelions ... and then clover flowers bloom when the dandelions are done. We tried for years to keep our yard clear of “weeds,” but then we discovered that they feed pollinators along with our little perennial flower garden all season long. Now we encourage their growth. We often sit on our back porch swing to chat and snuggle as we watch and hear the nature all around us. Perfect resting moments in between chores.
5. Our cat Calique is getting more and more gray hair in her ears, face, and head...harbingers of what lies ahead for us. After her living with us for two decades, this fact breaks my heart. We adopted her when she was two years old, and I enjoyed her constant attention and company. Even now, I am enjoying every moment I have with her, as well as cherishing the memories of her "friendship" with me and nurture of me during our many years together.
She is slowing down, like I am with age, but...she still has daily periods of playing like a kitten with the cat toys scattered all over our house. She loves small hidey-holes now too, which is interesting - corners of each room, under furniture, etc.
Her favorite place is on the back of the love seat, with us sitting in the chair with her. If we are not there with her, she actually screams for us to come NOW. What a diva!!!! We love her so much, and we are so grateful to God for giving her, as well as our kitty Christina, to us.
6. After moving to Illinois several years ago, I also started having a steady stream of physical problems in different forms. Pinched nerves, broken bones, traumatized bursae, loss of balance with several falls, lopsided acidic/alkaline blood levels, environmental toxins that retriggered some autoimmune issues once in remission, etc.
I started to dread the healing of one issue, because when God healed one of them, another soon popped up. However, I started to notice a seed for a miracle in every trial. The first day of the issue, I experienced all the pain inherent in the malady; however, on the second day all the pain was supernaturally removed by God, even though some issues physically took weeks or months to completely heal.
Without pain, the trial was much easier to bear, although a broken kneecap, toe, and foot bone required a wheelchair, and the traumatized bursae limited my movement considerably until the slow, steady healing of each issue allowed a return to normalcy.
7. Due to autoimmune issues, I developed various major diseases: Glaucoma, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Fibromyalgia, and several other ailments in my body. God used Amy Myers, MD to teach me to detox my life of chemicals that touched my skin, that I breathed into my body, or that I ingested through my mouth in the form of food treated with chemicals or to which I had an allergy.
One by one, God healed five major diseases so far. The issue that really frightened me was the onset of Multiple Sclerosis; so, I asked God to stop this as well. I trusted our Great Physician, and He healed me supernaturally. Within a year all the symptoms were gone.
Prayer:
Father God, thank You for your watch care over us, and Your constant vigil that brings us just what we need, when we need it. Remind us that if we lack something in our life that we really want, it is due to Your foreknowledge and that You have something better in store for us.
Thank You that You abide within us, and You walk with us through every experience, illness, heartache, and trauma that we experience in our lifetime. At times, we get so weary in our trials. Remind us to maintain our faith in Your faithfulness and to trust that, as our Father You know what is best for us. Our intimacy with You increases through every issue we face.
Thought for the Day:
God is so good to keep us in the shadow of His wings and the hollow of His hand when troubling times come into our life; His ways are perfect, and His timing is impeccable - He is always right on time … His time.
- Psalm 139; Isaiah 41:13, 49:2; Proverbs 30:4
