2 Timothy 2:1 "...be strong through the grace that God gives you in Christ Jesus." NLT
Life has been hard but God has been good...even when I thought he wasn't. He has let me go through trials, and this verse has let me see the beauty of his grace, and death to myself, a bit more clearly.
Strength in Grace? When I rely on my own strength to live for Jesus I fail every time. God's grace is the only thing in which I can have strength in. But this is so counter intuitive to human nature, especially men who want to conquer everything in their own time and strength. Yet, when I rely on God's Grace (Jesus and His LIFE gift) I find the ultimate strength that conquers everything and when tested in trials and fire, comes out burning brighter and hotter every time.
Lately, God has allowed me to be tested in:
(1) friendship
(2) relationships
(3) Faith
(4) Obedience
(5) Discipline/ Self-control
in all these I failed much. But God is also using it and me to show me and grow me in his ways to benefit others down the road we call life.
Faith has been weak, friends have been lost, in a relationship the Spirit ushered me away to be single, in obedience I defied God, and in discipline and self-control I simply wasn't.
Yet the Lord whispers more clearly, now more than ever, "Get ready!"
I think that he's saying this is only the beginning and if I'm not loving it now, I better start because it tends to get worse before the storm breaks.
So I'll keep dying daily to myself and following Jesus, listening to the Spirit along the way to win any hearts in search of real truth and love. In my death, my strength is gone and Jesus can be the only prevailing strength inside a lifeless body. Truly the Spirit alive in me as I walk around in a dead and dying vessel.
