I have been learning so much from God over the last year. I have been hit with proverbial 2x4s. I have honestly come up out of the darkest pit and I know God has been with me. The walk has not always been full of sunshine but it was a path I needed to take to move onto more of what God had in store.
So back to my feeling inadequate for God and ineffective. Since stopping the blog some months ago, I stopped seeing and hearing God clearly. The chatter around me became noise and I felt like I wasn't being used. I am sure you know that feeling...feeling like you are struggling so how in the world would God be able to use that.
Last night, I met up with a friend of mine from Toledo. It is too long of a story to get into here; however, it was the first time in a long time when I clearly saw and heard God and knew I was being effective if I was letting Him use me. I was blessed to meet a friend of hers and hear his story. I won't go into details here. He is in the middle of a struggle and I was reminded that the pain and struggle we go through can be used as a victory story to help someone else. Then, I ran across the following verse this afternoon.
2 Corinthians 1:4-5 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 5 For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.
Our stories and struggles shouldn't be a source of pain and shame but used as an opportunity to help those around us. We are all very flawed and if we take the time to care for those around us, we can turn our stories into a piece of joy instead of pain.
I am grateful to have been so wonderfully blessed. Thank you Lord for washing me clean and helping me have the strength to help others through their hurt so that they might find YOU.
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