Rejoice!

In the midst of all our trials and tribulations, it's easy to forget all of God's blessings on our family. I'm watching one of these "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" where two of the family's four children are amputees...one little girl with both legs and one arm gone. Yet she has so much joy and generosity to give to others, even her old prosthetics she donated to Haitian children with amputations. It's a wonder how we, as Christians, get caught up in worldly desires and issues that we forget God's real blessings.

After our discussion in Sunday school this morning, it got me thinking about how easily we forget about our source of eternal joy. How easily I forget that my child is healthy with all four of his limbs, he's developmentally on track and has no serious health issues (unless a big personality counts). How easily I forget that I have a roof over my head and I'm protected from the wind and rain when I find myself longing for a bigger house with more space. How easily I forget that I've never truly known what it's like to be hungry when I complain about missing a meal. How easily I forget that my bills get paid (nearly) on time every month and we have a steady paycheck when so many families are out of work and suffering around the country. Our happiness wavers day to day, but our joy is a constant; that is, the joy that comes from our faith and hope in Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:1-3 says "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance".

Rejoice in the hope of the glory of God! And rejoice in sufferings? It's because through the suffering we "persevere" and grow closer to God. Sometimes it takes being in the pit to realize we can't do everything on our own and that we NEED God. We can't do it on our own!

That's my rant for the week...have a blessed one!