In the Words of George Mueller

George Mueller lost Mary, his beloved wife of 39 years, to rheumatic fever. He spoke the following words at her memorial service:

"I miss her in numberless ways, and shall miss her yet more and more. But as a child of God, and as a servant of the Lord Jesus, I bow. I am satisfied with the will of my Heavenly Father. I seek by perfect submission to His holy will to glorify Him. I kiss continually the hand that has thus afflicted me."

I don't know about you, but just reading those words humbles me. It is so easy to follow God and love Him when everything in our lives are going the way we think they should be. Our vision of how our lives should be usually includes physical and financial comfort, stability (knowing what to expect tomorrow), and many times we feel as though we should be able to have anything we desire, especially if it is something intrinsically good. Oh, how much our visions differ from what God tells us our reality will be! We are told that as Christians we will suffer. We are called to pick up our cross, an instrument of torture and death, and follow in Christ's footsteps. God doesn't promise us sunshine and roses. He promises there will be turbulent storms we will walk through, yet He promises to be our shield with every step we take. He promises droughts that will parch our lips and He promises to quench our thirst with Living Water. He promises treacherous mountains that we will scale and He will be our firm footing. God doesn't ask us to walk through anything that He will not equip us for. George Mueller understood this Truth as he grieved his precious wife. No doubt his heart ached at his loss, but He was walking close enough to God to recognize that He wasn't grieving alone. He knew his Father in Heaven was near him and comforting him in his grief.

It is my prayer that we also can rest in our Father's presence when we are afflicted with suffering. Each one of us has a story and while the details of our stories are vastly different, at the core they are very much the same. Most of us have suffered at some point in our lives; but there are those who have yet to suffer; and still there are some of us who are suffering at this very moment. Whether our suffering is over the loss of a loved one, lack of employment, poor health, or broken relationships, if we are walking with God our Truth and reality is the same - we have a Father who loves us more than we can fathom and He is pouring out His mercies on us with each new day, equipping us for what lies ahead, all while He comforts us showering compassion on our broken hearts and bodies. If you are suffering as you read this, I pray you know how much God loves you. I pray you allow yourself to be wrapped in His love and compassion and that you stay there as long as it takes you to heal. He will bind your wounds and strengthen you to take the next step in your journey and He will be there when the road becomes difficult to pick you back up.


"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too."
- 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 (ESV)

Undeserved

Lord, I give You all of me
asking nothing in return
but You pour out your mercy
having patience as I learn

You daily shower grace on me
though nothing I deserve
You look on me in favor
And wrap me in your love

The awe You cause within me
grows deeper day by day
You cause my heart to yearn
for the place I've yet to see

Each day I spend walking
following You step by step
brings me one day closer
to that blessed place you've kept

Oh how my heart rejoices
when I consider what's in store
knowing I am nearer to
the day I'll kneel before your throne.