“Many people don’t think they are loved, or held safe, and so when suffering comes they see it as an affirmation of their worthlessness. The great question of ministry and the spiritual life is to learn to live our brokenness under the blessing and not the curse.” Henri Nouwen
I am often blown away by the efforts and thoughts of some of the most simple-living people. I am talking about people who choose to live in simplicity and less complicated lives than most. You could think of Mother Teresa or a guy named Richard Foster or this Henri Nouwen I am quoting today.
When I first heard of Nouwen and began looking at his life, I found a man who has big convictions about faith and lived them in such a way that others saw and were touched by them.
Is the glass half empty or half full? Are you worthy or worthless? Are you loved and loving others?
The answers have to tell you just what you think about God. For me, if I let the negative and the bumpy roads dictate my thoughts and my feelings, I am in trouble. Would you agree? That first quote reminds us that even when the crud of life surrounds us that we are still people blessed by God (Ephesians 1:3ff). We must like that truth. Which living the truth means we have some choices to make.
“.....every time there are losses there are choices to be made. You choose to live your losses as passages to anger, blame, hatred, depression and resentment, or you choose to let these losses be passages to something new, something wider, and deeper.” Henri Nouwen
Let God turn the crud into opportunity. Let God fill your pain with His blessing. Let God give you strength when you are weak. Why? God gives us reason to live!
“In his kindness God called you to his eternal glory by means of Jesus Christ. After you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.” 1 Peter 5:10 (NLT)
I am often blown away by the efforts and thoughts of some of the most simple-living people. I am talking about people who choose to live in simplicity and less complicated lives than most. You could think of Mother Teresa or a guy named Richard Foster or this Henri Nouwen I am quoting today.
When I first heard of Nouwen and began looking at his life, I found a man who has big convictions about faith and lived them in such a way that others saw and were touched by them.
Is the glass half empty or half full? Are you worthy or worthless? Are you loved and loving others?
The answers have to tell you just what you think about God. For me, if I let the negative and the bumpy roads dictate my thoughts and my feelings, I am in trouble. Would you agree? That first quote reminds us that even when the crud of life surrounds us that we are still people blessed by God (Ephesians 1:3ff). We must like that truth. Which living the truth means we have some choices to make.
“.....every time there are losses there are choices to be made. You choose to live your losses as passages to anger, blame, hatred, depression and resentment, or you choose to let these losses be passages to something new, something wider, and deeper.” Henri Nouwen
Let God turn the crud into opportunity. Let God fill your pain with His blessing. Let God give you strength when you are weak. Why? God gives us reason to live!
“In his kindness God called you to his eternal glory by means of Jesus Christ. After you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.” 1 Peter 5:10 (NLT)
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