Pastor John,
This morning Richard was reading the “Suffering and the Saints” book. When he finished the first part, he said that it was so good. He loved how you wrote out the message and how it feels and that it is such a good reminder of how God is in charge of our lives and taking care of us.
I wanted to read what he had just read, so I picked up the book. He was using the book cover to mark the place where he finished reading. When I opened the book, it opened up, not where he had it marked, but two pages before on what he had just read that he said was so good. This is what it said:
“I believe that the key to this kind of steadfastness in faith is a genuine knowledge of God and that the key to that knowledge is the revelation of Creation. When we experience the revelation knowledge of God as Creator, the rope of trust in God is no longer something at which our wondering hearts desperately grasp; rather, faith becomes woven into the fabric of our mind and spirit so that it becomes part of who we are. It becomes our foundation instead of our goal. Then, growing in this grace and knowledge of our Savior, we survey past experiences which we once denounced as evil attacks against us and perceive the short-sightedness of such a view. We see those experiences as the very stones upon which we now stand and view the glory of God, as stepping stones which were hewn by caring hands to match our toddling steps. Yes, evil spirits or men may have shoved those stones into our pathway, but they did neither determine the size of those stones nor when in our pilgrimage we would face them.”
I couldn’t believe it! I didn’t even know that was in there! Last Spring (sometime before our beach trip in May) I was in the shower and I had a vision in my mind of myself standing on a stone path. Each stone on the path had a trial written on it. I could see each stone being thrown to me in every trial by someone or, something which Jesus sent. Sometimes those stones felt like my heart had been torn out, like when my children were kidnapped. Or they felt embarrassing when I received correction. I saw myself holding the stone and I had a choice to make. I could place the stone down and use it as a stepping stone to get where Jesus was taking me, or I could use the stone to build a wall to protect me from the hurt. I could even throw the stone back at the person Jesus was using. The choice was up to me.
When I got out of the shower, I drew out the vision on a piece of paper, with me standing on one side of the stone path and Jesus on the other, and I wrote this down:
“Sometimes trials can feel like stones being thrown at you. Don’t use them to build a wall instead place them at your feet and use them as the stepping stones to get where Jesus is taking you. He is sending them, they are the path that leads to him.”
I loved reading these things in the “Suffering and Saints” book this morning and hearing it echoed again in the message tonight. I am thankful for each of those stones (trials). They are now a blessing to me. I needed each and every one of them, from the biggest, hardest trials to each and every small one. They were perfectly designed by Jesus for me, and I learned to trust him to see me through. I love that!
Goodnight!
Amy F.
