ACCEPTANCE

(What I do thou knowest not now; but

thou shalt know hereafter. John 13:7)

Accepted! From Thy hand, my Lord, I take

This hurting thing, and bear it for Thy sake;

Nor bear it only, but in Thy dear Name,

Thy strength, Thy power to love it, Lord, I claim.

To love it, ‘till from struggles, pain and tears,

The likeness of Thy life in me appears,

To love it till the Cross becomes a Crown

That, one day, at Thy feet I may lay down.

Accepted! From Thy hand, this thing I take,

Lord, make it glorious for Thine own Name's sake!

Of course this quality of acceptance is not the product of firm resolve or stiff upper lip. But when we ask God, He lavishes His grace upon us and then the dark trial takes on a kind of radiance.

I know that in the rejection that can never be undone, in the sorrow and disappointment of childlessness and in many other bitter woundings, I have experienced the radiance and reality of His Presence far beyond what I thought was possible. I'm praying that in the midst of your fiery furnace, you will experience times of rich joy and deep fellowship which are impossible to any but God's own, precious children.

I cannot explain how this can be possible; I only know from experience that it is Sovereignly possible and Sovereignly desired.

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The above is something I wrote several years ago but more and more I see the truth and privilege of being embraced by God's Sovereign, unfailing love. In the increasingly difficult and painful circumstances we can't understand, we know assuredly that His love, His power have not failed, cannot fail. It is His glorious purpose, which is being worked out -- to restore us to the Divine image. What overwhelming, mind-boggling grace that, before the foundation of the world, we were chosen to become like Jesus. With love & prayers,