Tag Archives: Trusting God

God’s gifts in suffering (7) Two unchanging things

Life, Sola Panel

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You can read the previous posts in this series here: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5 and part 6.

flickr: mikeyskatie

Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord!
O Lord, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive
to the voice of my pleas for mercy! …
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope.
(Psalm 130:1-2, 5)

There’s something about certain Christian books on suffering that bugs me. I’m just going to come out and say it. The writer tells you how suffering deepened his feelings of closeness to God. How a sense of God’s presence never really left her. They imply, and sometimes even promise, you’ll feel the same. I’ve finished paragraphs like that with tears running down my cheeks, longing for what I’m reading about, angry at God for failing to deliver, wondering what’s missing in me. (more…)

God’s gifts in suffering (5) Suffering shows us what we truly fear to lose

Life, Sola Panel, Sola Panel

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Sorry this post has taken a while. Sometimes you’re too close to something to be able to write about it. By God’s grace, here it is. (You can read my previous posts here: part 1, part 2, part 3 and part 4.)

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:6-7)

flickr: mark sebastian

I’ve been listening to my fears. I’ve been imagining dire possibilities. Every medical article, every story of hardship, every description of suffering, seems a pointer to our future, a list of what-might-be. There are times when I lie face down on the carpet, sick to the gut, held down by a blank, black dread. I knew that I would cry, but fear? It seems a strange accompaniment to sorrow.

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How to be a small group member

Everyday Ministry

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Another year, another Bible study group. Time to sign up, turn up and get things rolling. Ho hum. Time also perhaps to ask some questions about your own contribution to the small group you are in. Are you making much of a difference in the lives of your fellow group members? Do you feel as if you just go along because that’s what you’re expected to do? What part are you going to play in this year’s group? (more…)