“Oh that my request would come to pass,
And that God would grant me the thing that I long for! I wish that it would please God to crush me,
That He would let loose His hand and cut me off. Then I would still have this consolation—
my joy in unrelenting pain—
that I had not denied the words of the Holy One. What strength do I have left, that I should wait [and hope]?
And what is ahead of me, that I should be patient and endure?
“Is my strength and endurance that of stones,
Or is my flesh made of bronze? For the despairing man there should be kindness from his friend;
So that he does not abandon (turn away from) the fear of the Almighty.
“My brothers have acted deceitfully like a brook,
Like the torrents of brooks that vanish,"
For a while now I have felt like I lost my joy; I felt like I can't do this anymore, this is too hard. This is too much for me. The pressure is too much, there is too much heat in this furnace of affliction.
And then I was reminded that I have the fruit of the Spirit - Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Goodness, Kindness & Self-control - I have all of these because the spirit of God dwells on the inside of me! I realised that the feeling of having lost my joy is a lie. The fruit of the Spirit cannot be taken from you! It can be set aside or forgotten but never be removed or lost. I am reminded that as a Son of God {son, daughter - it's all the same to Him} I have already been blessed with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.
I thank God for His grace:
God's
Riches
At
Christ's
Expense
I thank God for His mercy that through it I am given what I need, not what I deserve.
I thank God for His peace and that there is no condemnation for those in Christ who have been set free from the law of sin and of death!
I am reminded that the mind set on the flesh is death but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace.
THANK YOU JESUS!
“I know that You can do all things,
And that no thought or purpose of Yours can be restrained.
“[You said to me] ‘Who is this that darkens and obscures counsel [by words] without knowledge?’
Therefore [I now see] I have [rashly] uttered that which I did not understand,
Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
‘Hear, please, and I will speak;
I will ask You, and You instruct [and answer] me.’
“I had heard of You [only] by the hearing of the ear,
But now my [spiritual] eye sees You.
“Therefore I retract [my words and hate myself]
And I repent in dust and ashes.”
Father forgive me!
I thank You that as I receive Your forgiveness, I can come boldly before Your throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace in my time of need.
