Quote from Forum Archives on July 20, 2003, 12:36 am

Posted by: bigguyhereagain <bigguyhereagain@...>

~~~ Life Is Never Perfect ~~~

 

Life is never  perfect , but Jesus is.  He takes the imperfections, the broken pieces and the messes, and turns them into hope.
 
I always remember a pastor saying to me -
 
Remember what your going through, it didnt come to stay, it came to pass.  You may be living in a parenthesis, but whatever your going through it wont last forever.
 
There are several steps we all go through when we try to give a problem completely to God.  You take your first step when life rises up to knock you flat - you CHURN.  You feel as though your insides are full of knives , chopping you up in a grinder. There is no other way to describe the devastation  you feel when your churning inside.
 
Your next step is to BURN. Thats right, you want to go mad with anger. You literally feel as though your burning inside.
 
Then you YEARN.  Oh you want so much for the situation to change.  You just ache inside for things to be as they were before you yearn for the happy past and to be honest this stage usually lasts the longest.
 
But then you will eventually take the next step you LEARN.  You talk with others, maybe you find a support group, and you learn that your in a long growth process.  You become more understanding and compassionate.  Spiritual  values you learned in the past will suddenly become real to you. You will learn a great deal about unconditional love and reaching out to help others. The wonderful result is that you relive your own pain.
 
And then you take your last step - You TURN . You learn to turn the problem over to the Lord completely by saying 'Whatever Lord!'    Whatever you bring into my life, You are big enough to get me through it'   Now you can relinquish your heaviness to God, knowing that he is in control. He loves you more than you know. He will not reject you ever. When you nail your problem to the foot of the Cross, and say you have deposited that problem with the Lord and truly mean it, then you will be relieved of your crushing burden.
 
But here comes the really difficult part.   Just because you've come through all those steps does not mean that you will not go back to CHURNING, BURNING, AND YEARNING  on certain days. But each time you might stay at these stages a little less and you will be able to spend more time turning it all over to God.
 
In 1 Peter 5:7 we are told to cast our cares upon Him.  That means deposit our cares, and leave them there. 
 
So if you have a problem no matter what it is
CHURN  awhile -----BURN for a time........YEARN for as long as it takes to move on ........LEARN as much as you can ..............and then TURN it all over to the One who cares for you.
 
Don't fret if you think you are not progressing or even when suddenly for no reason, you find yourself back at square one.

 

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~~~ DEAR GOD ~~~

 

I'm writing to say I'm sorry
For being angry yesterday
When you seemed to ignore my prayer
And things didn't go my way

 

First, my car broke down
I was very late for work
But I missed that awful accident
Was that your handiwork?

 

I found a house I loved
But others got there first
I was angry, then relieved
When I heard the pipes had burst!

 

Yesterday, I found the perfect dress
But the color was too pale
Today, I found the dress in red
Would you believe, it was on sale!
           
I know you're watching over me
And I'm feeling truly blest
For no matter what I pray for
You always know what's best!

 

I have this circle of E-mail friends,
Who mean the world to me;
Some days I "send" and "send",
At other times, I let them be.
          
When I see each name download,
And view the message they've sent;
I know they've thought of me that day,
And "well wishes" were their intent.

I am so blessed to have these friends,
With whom I've grown so close;
So this little poem I dedicate to them,
Because to me they are the "Most"!
               
So to you, my friends, I would like to say,
Thank you for being a part;
Of all my daily contacts,
This comes right from my heart.
                   
God bless you all is my prayer today,
I'm honored to call you "friend";
I pray the Lord will keep you safe,
Until we write again.

 

God Bless You

 

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Have a Blessed Day

Dave and Barbara

 

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