Howard Rutledge came to appreciate his time as a POW in Vietnam. He wrote, “After twenty-eight days of torture, I could remember I had children but not how many. I prayed for strength. During long periods of enforced reflection, it became so much easier to separate the important from the trivial. My hunger for spiritual food soon outdid my hunger for steak. It took prison to show me how empty life is without God.
God is at work in each of us, whether we want it or not. He takes no pleasure in making life hard. Lamentations 3:33 says, “He takes no pleasure in making life hard, in throwing roadblocks in the way.” (MSG) He does not relish in our sufferings, but He delights in our development. No one said the road would be easy or painless. But God will use this mess for something good. God is doing what is best for us, training us to live His holy best. You have His assurance…you will get through this.
