Bringing Christ Glory in Suffering

I can name on one hand the number of messages I have heard that have wrecked me to the core. Actually, I would say that I could probably chalk it up to two messages total. I remember I went to church alone one evening in November 2010, and sat in the center section a few seats from the back. A man named Stephen Venable spoke that night and his message was on "Bringing Christ Glory in Suffering". I sat in my chair that night and wept afterwards, knowing this was the desire of my heart... how I longed that my life contain such a testimony. That in every season of my life, I would ascribe worth and proclaim the beauty of Jesus even in the midst of my darkest days. 

I cannot tell if that message catapulted me into the next season of my life, or came along in the midst of that season and solidified what was already happening. But what I do know is that desire was being fashioned within. My heart was marked with longing to bring glory to Jesus in all things. Even in suffering. 

That message from Stephen Venable has come floating to the surface once again. It's always been there, it never leaves me, but it has been hidden under a few layers of life (something I regretfully admit). In the middle of what has yet to be my greatest trial, I wish I could say I have from the get-go sang "It is well with my soul" but alas, I've curled up with Ben & Jerry's Half Baked ice-cream, and watched more sitcoms than I care to admit (consider this my confession). Still, I want so badly to set my heart on things above, I want to love and to know Jesus. 

But here is what I'm discovering, I am bad at that! I will not scratch my own back and tell you how I've come up out of the miry clay because I did it right. He will do it in me and I will say yes. I'm not negating my part in this. I have a part to play, I have a yes to give, a heart to open, and a mind to set on things above. But He will be the One to pull me through it all. I can't go back and re-do what has been already done, but I can allow my life to again embrace the worth and beauty of Jesus. 

If you're interested in the message, I found it here. Just click on the link below.

The Glory of Jesus and Suffering