Have you ever noticed how life seems to come in stages? There's the "little-child" stage, that early part of our childhood before we learn about the difficulties of life. There's the "end-of-life" stage, when the virtuous woman is surrounded by "the fruit of her hands" and "her own works" are praising her. In between, there are various other stages in which we are supposed to be growing more and more into the person God wants us to be.
Most of the time, this growth is achieved gradually through reading the Bible, studying its truths, and praying to the Lord. However, our biggest growth seems to occur during tragedies, those life-shattering crisises that sometimes interrupt our day-to-day routine.
As we emerge from this pain, we find ourselves in a new stage. Our perspective has been changed. We are less concerned about the petty things of life. Having gone through that trial, we have matured. We are more appreciate of the blessings and joys that we still have. We have been forced to lean more on the Lord, and our faith has been strengthened.
This weekend a friend of mine has gone into a stage that very few women her age experience. She lost both of her children in a car accident. As she is lying in her own hospital bed in ICU today, I am praying for her to feel God's presence holding her up. She, her husband, and their families will undoubtedly emerge much stronger from this trial. As time goes on, part of her will always bear the scar from this pain. It will be a token of honor. She is becoming the woman God wants her to be.
"Wherein ye greatly rejoice,
though now for a season, if need be,
ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
That the trial of your faith,
being much more precious than of gold that perisheth,
though it be tried with fire,
might be found unto praise and honour and glory
at the appearing of Jesus Christ:"
1 Peter 1:6-7
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