I have rubber bands around my knees & my feet still are lead balloons. But I'm thankful for the HOPE I have in Christ.
It really does feel as though I have rubber bands around my knees & my feet are lead filled balloons. This stifling heat-wave here in the Pacific Northwest is doing nothing to help my already swollen limbs full of edema. While these things certainly are trying they do not consume me, for I'm thankful because of the HOPE I have in Christ.
Job 2:10b says: Shall we receive good from God, & shall we not receive evil?" In all this Job did not sin with his lips.
Job was enduring many trials, tests, & afflictions & yet he stood true to his faith knowing that the God who created this world with both good & bad would ultimately still be worthy of praise no matter what it was that Job had to live through. Through the book of Job we see him question why, but not rebuke God. In the end of the book we see that God richly rewarded Job, & that in the end Job's faith in God grew, as did his heart of thankfulness to God.
It's fine & good to focus on having a thankful heart. But if you are hurting or dealing with a burden it does no good to ignore it forcing yourself to only think thankful thoughts. Keeping quite can prevent others from knowing what to pray about with you or keeping them from doing God's will by helping to meet your needs.
In Matt. 25:43-45 Jesus says: 'I was a stranger & you did not welcome me, naked & you did not clothe me, sick & in prison & you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, & did not minister to you?' Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.'
If we tell people to not speak up how can we do as scripture says and bare each-others burdens? (Galatians 6:1-3)
I find GREAT COMFORT & HOPE when reading the promises in scripture. I will be honest and open and say when I am dealing with a great deal of discomfort or other burdens because I know I have a great circle of prayer warriors and lending hands around me
2 Corinthians 4:7-18
But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you.
Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, "I believed, and so I spoke," we also believe, and so we also speak, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.
So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
Romans 5:3-5
More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Job 2:10b says: Shall we receive good from God, & shall we not receive evil?" In all this Job did not sin with his lips.
Job was enduring many trials, tests, & afflictions & yet he stood true to his faith knowing that the God who created this world with both good & bad would ultimately still be worthy of praise no matter what it was that Job had to live through. Through the book of Job we see him question why, but not rebuke God. In the end of the book we see that God richly rewarded Job, & that in the end Job's faith in God grew, as did his heart of thankfulness to God.
It's fine & good to focus on having a thankful heart. But if you are hurting or dealing with a burden it does no good to ignore it forcing yourself to only think thankful thoughts. Keeping quite can prevent others from knowing what to pray about with you or keeping them from doing God's will by helping to meet your needs.
In Matt. 25:43-45 Jesus says: 'I was a stranger & you did not welcome me, naked & you did not clothe me, sick & in prison & you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, & did not minister to you?' Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.'
If we tell people to not speak up how can we do as scripture says and bare each-others burdens? (Galatians 6:1-3)
I find GREAT COMFORT & HOPE when reading the promises in scripture. I will be honest and open and say when I am dealing with a great deal of discomfort or other burdens because I know I have a great circle of prayer warriors and lending hands around me
2 Corinthians 4:7-18
But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you.
Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, "I believed, and so I spoke," we also believe, and so we also speak, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.
So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
Romans 5:3-5
More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Labels: faith, RA, Rheumatoid Arthritis, scripture, Thankful, thanksgiving
posted by Celestial Freak @ 7/29/2009 02:07:00 PM
1 Comments:
Thanks so much for sharing. This could be day 4 in the series I've been doing on my blog ;)
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