I’ve been thinking about God’s gifts this morning. The gifts of difficult relationships, hard working environments, disobedient children – all of these and many, many more are gifts even though they don’t seem to be in the moment. God uses all of these “gifts” to make us more like Jesus. They are all part of our sanctification.
As you approach these “gifts” throughout each day of life, the choice exists for us to react in our own strength and understanding or turn our eyes to the Father and seek to use each of these situations as redemptive possibilities.
With difficult relationships, we have the opportunity to move towards people with the love and forgiveness that Christ has shown us. He is always moving toward us – especially when we are unlovable. With hard work environments, we have the opportunity to realize how needy we truly are and this can drive us to God to ask for help moment by moment to love others, react with kindness and actually live in the strength that God provides. And with our children, we have the opportunity to not merely correct behavior, we can explore their hearts and see each opportunity as a chance to share grace, love and discipline. It even gives us the opportunity to ask for their forgiveness when we act sinfully towards them.
Is any of this easy? Nope. It isn’t supposed to be. The fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5 is not named by mistake. It isn’t the fruit of my good efforts or the fruit of trying harder. It is the fruit of the Spirit because it is the fruit that only God can truly give.
Rich Mullins wrote, “The long and short of all of it is that if I believe that God is good, then I need to accept whatever happens in my life as being a gift, and allow Him to take some of the things that hurt, allow Him to take some of the things that sting, some of the things that I think are going to kill me – allow Him to take those things and make of me the person He wants me to be. It may not be the person I want to be, but it’ll be the person He would want me to be.”
Let’s remember that God is at work today and seek to be thankful for these “gifts” that God gives.
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Your post has been something I have been thinking about and chewing on for awhile. I have begun to look at disease, hardship and failure as a gift from God. Its very counter intuitive and sometimes hard to maintain but for me it keeps being the most freeing thought that I can have.
P.S. Thanks for the post! I know I helped you with your “extreme blog makeover”, but as I read your posts I’ve got to say that you are a natural at this blogging thing! My wife and I will definitely be following your posts!
Good for people to know.