Unbelievable Joy

Tonight I woke up sick, the really painful, miserable, drive-you-out-of-your-mind

kind of sick. As I sat up enduring it, I turned my mind and heart to the Lord, asking for His presence and help to endure the suffering until it had run its course (and of course for His mercy to end it). At some moments my pain was so intense I could barely keep Him in mind, but I determined not to give in to pain and let it consume me. Instead I determined to fix my mind and hope on my Lord and wait for Him to answer my cry for mercy.

It was surprisingly short-lived, and when it ended, I was left with a such a tremor of joy--He was so near. I felt almost a euphoria of peace, and so much joy welled up inside of me at being so near to Him. It wasn't merely relief at the end of suffering; I felt as though I were in heaven already, with Him, and it seemed to me that I couldn't remember ever having suffered before in my life. If you had asked me at that moment, I would have said with perfect honesty that I hadn't!

Immediately I realized that it was the perfect picture of what I had experienced earlier this morning, when the Lord showed me how I was covered by His goodness and headed to a destiny that was so unbelievably good it would overwhelm anything I had ever called "suffering". In fact, I thought of Carol's words in response to a previous entry--that we would look back and call the times we suffered the best times. The closeness to God and the joy I experienced as a result of this short trial made me give such thanks to God, and to see this trial as a GIFT. My friends, my fellow believers in Jesus Christ, we are headed to something unspeakably, unbelievably good. It is here for us now and goes on to eternity. I never would have imagined that suffering was part of the abundant life, but it turns out somehow that it is necessary to it, and the suffering itself is turned into a glory. Praise God whose goodness truly knows no limit!