The Suffering Won't Last Forever.....

As I sit here, I am overwhelmed by the emotions whirling around in my heart. Over the last 6+ months, other than constant financial problems, things have been going pretty well in my life. NOW, a new season has come and with it.....stress, fear and pain in a variety of different areas in my life. So as I began to pray and open the Word to see what "Daddy" might want me to share, I opened to 1 Peter 5:10,11 in The Message:

"So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won't last forever. It won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ-eternal and glorious plans they are!-will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does."

Now, quite a few entries back, I highlighted this verse but not with the same heart as today. This scripture has tears in my eyes and a heaviness in my heart because I want it to be true.....RIGHT NOW!!!!! It seems like there has been so much more pain in my life than "glorious plans", you know? Of course you do! We are His hurt little girls....we know what pain is. But, my dearest sisters-kindred spirits in pain....take comfort with me in these verses. The wording itself shows that He knew when He inspired the Bible to be written that we would feel like the suffering WAS going to last forever! He knew that we would not be "in one piece and on our feet"! I find comfort in that truth.

We are told in the beginning of verse 10 to, "Keep a firm grip on the faith." This is not easy for us because faith is just another word for trust and we were taught VERY WELL by our abuse NOT to trust and even more specifically, NOT to trust our father. I know that we can take refuge in the fact that our Daddy knows our hearts and understands why our faith/trust suffers. "The suffering won't last forever." So I can tell you what I am going to do as I go into this new week with a very heavy heart. I am going to take it one step at a time, one day at a time and when things seem like just too much.....one hour at a time. And I am going to let His word be my anchor when my trust is weak, if I do that.... THEN I can have confidence that there IS more and that the "more" is "eternal and glorious".
I pray that as you struggle with the various tests and trials that, no doubt, this new week will bring, that you also let these verses anchor you through the storm and to the other side where He kneels with open arms to draw us in to His unfathonable love.