Read this today and had to share it! It is from My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers. GET INSPIRED!!!
"I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church..."
Colossians 1:24
We take our own spiritual consecration and try to make it into a call of God, but when we get right with Him He brushes all this aside . Then He gives us a tremendous, riveting pain to fasten our attention on something that we never even dreamed could be His call for us. And for one radiant, flashing moment we see His purpose, and we say, "Here I am! Send me" (Isaiah 6:8)
This call has nothing to do with personal sanctification, but with being made broken bread and poured out wine. Yet God can enver make us into wine if we object to the fingers He chooses to use to crush us. We say, "If God would only use His own fingers, and make me broken bread and poured-out wine in a special way, then I wouldn't object!" But when He uses someone we dislike, or some set of circumstances to which we said we would never submit, to crush us, then we object. Yet we must never try to choose the place of our own martyrdom. If we are ever going to be made into wine, we will have to be crushed--you cannot drink grapes. Grapes become wine only when they have been squeezed.
I wonder what finger and thumb God has been using to squeeze you? Have you been as hard as a marble and escaped? If you are not ripe yet, and if God had squeezed you anyway, the wine produced would have been remarkably bitter. To be a holy person means that the elements of our natural life experience the very presence of God as they are providentially broken in His service. We have to be placed into God and brought into agreement with Him before we can be broken bread in His hands. Stay right with God and let Him do as He likes, and you will find that He is producing the kind of bread and wine that will benefit His other children.
Wow!!! TRUE STORY!!!
I pray that we stay positive during our times of suffering. I pray that we put God first in ALL situations that we go through, good or bad! Jesus LEAD US!!!! I pray for strength and endurance!! So that we will be encouragements to those that need it around us! All this I pray in Jesus name! AMEN!
I stand in agreement with you. I pray for those who are sick and don't know how to call upon the name of the Lord for healing. I pray for those who are broken and don't know how to call upon the Lord for wholeness. I pray for those who are unforgiving; even to themselves and don't know how to call upon the Lord for forgiveness. I pray for those who are depressed and don't know how to call upon the Lord for Joy. Most of all, I pray for those who don't know the Lord and I pray for the continuance of sharing his Love on this blog and everywhere we go. Jesus says in Mark 8:38, "If you are ashamed of me and my words in this sinful and adulterous generation, then I will be ashamed of you in front of my father." It is HIM who gives peace. He is an awesome, mighty God and God is waiting on us to seek him.
ReplyDeleteAmen!
ReplyDeleteDP... Good word! Thank you for sharing it!!!
ReplyDeleteAre you reading the book or do you too have the app on your ipod? The app I listen to is 5 minutes every night and is such a delightful way to end the day before drifting off to sleep. :) I also have the audiobook for days when I prefer a bit more.