Today, June 25, Oswald Chambers writes, http://utmost.org/: My attitude as a saint to sorrow and difficulty is not to ask that they may be prevented, but to ask that I may preserve the self God created me to be through every fire of sorrow. Our Lord Jesus received Himself in the fire of sorrow, He was saved not from the hour, but out of the hour. . . . suffering either gives me my self or it destroys my self.

Sorrow and suffering and pain have done both for me. Some days, some years, they have stolen my inner self. Other times they have burned away the dross of life, reminding me what is truly precious. Freeing me to be completely my Lord’s. Bringing me into wholeness. Calling me to utter dependence on Him.

It is no use saying sorrow ought not to be. Sin and sorrow and suffering are, and it is not for us to say that God has made a mistake in allowing them.

Rather, it is we who make the mistake when we continue questioning, railing against God. Expending all our energies grumbling and focusing on ourselves. Oh God, help us focus on you.

Help us remember you are so much bigger than anything this world can throw at us. Help us believe you are with us, no matter how dark the unknown. Help us trust you to walk us through all things. Upholding. Preserving. Remaking. Strengthening. Bringing life and speaking hope.

And as Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 12:9b: Most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me . . . may we who find the power of God in our weakness be sure to give witness and praise to our Redeemer.

For if you receive yourself in the fires of sorrow, God will make you nourishment for other people. May it be so, Lord Jesus, may it be so.