Some of the biggest lessons of life are also the hardest. They truly send us into an oblivion of pain
for the purposes of eventual profit, in terms of competence and/or character
gain, initially, then for blessing later on.
Let’s take the discomfort of humiliation. Humiliation is to feel humiliated — it’s a perception thing. It’s not a reality other than being a felt
reality. And we can’t stay there. Sure, it’s blindsided us, but we have the
will to recover. Humiliation is not the
end. It’s a fresh beginning, if we turn
to the Lord who never stops loving us; who has opened His arms to accept us no
matter what.
So this is what we need to be aware of:
“Remove sorrow
from your heart,
and put away pain
from your flesh,
because youth and
the prime of life are fleeting.”
— Ecclesiastes 11:10 (HCSB)
You may be older of years, but, hear this, you’re still in the
age of your youth; you’re still in the prime of your life. Youth and the prime of life end at the end of
life. Humiliation at any age is not the
end of the story, not by a long stretch.
So, if we’ve met humiliation, the next step, having wilfully
accepted it, is the grand expanse of humility.
There’s no better place in the whole of God’s Kingdom than of being contrite
of heart. It may not feel good, but it’s
the perfect launching pad from which a submitted spirit takes the step… into
trust.
Only from discomfort comes the compelling opportunity to trust
with daring resolve.
Trust is superfluous when there’s no reason to risk. It’s true that there’s little trust required
of a person of faith whose life is going swimmingly. Thank God you have the need to trust in Him fully. Thank Him that there’s no other way for you
in this circumstance.
To trust naturally involves courage; it implicates a determined
pluck of passion that will catapult you into your purpose. It’s always God’s work to situate us in our
purpose, for it’s His purpose, but never without trust. Again, it may not feel good, and it won’t
help you feel better, but thank God you’ve got the courage to step forth into
the unknown, for which He is revealing your purpose.
From purpose can only come blessing, and when we’re blessed our
purpose flourishes ever more.
***
When we’re hemmed in with discomfort, we’re forced to find the
courage to trust God, so He will lead us out into our purpose, which is His
blessing.
Discomfort leads us out of safe environs with no future into a
future where unknown environs are scarily awesome.
© 2016 Steve Wickham.
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