Struggles

God brings struggles into our lives to reveal two things to us---who we really are and who He is. The trouble comes when instead of praying for insight, I pray merely for deliverance. Deliverance is a guarantee. He knows what we need before we even ask. In fact, I will not encounter anything "down the road" of life that He has not already provided for. My future is not uncertain. Our God's love is not reactive but proactive. What I need to learn to pray is "Open my eyes that I might see glimpses of truth Thou hast for me. Open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit divine."

 And, God does not reveal to us things in another person's life so that we can sit in judgment. He reveals those things so we can intercede for them, work toward restoration, and evaluate our own need of a deeper commitment and transformation. In every situation the first person I need to hold up to the light of God's truth is myself. Another person's struggle is not a reason for me to pat myself on the back spiritually, but to embrace confession and to hunger for a closer walk with Him and the light of His presence. Knowing, of course, that walking in the Light will continually reveal the darkness that needs to be purged--cleansed--from my own life.

 I don't know how many things God saves me from each day, but I know one of them: He saves me from myself.