Blessings The Hard Ward Way
I had only been in Uganda for about ten months. As Missionary Matthew, I had all those romantic ideas about what it meant to serve the Lord deep in the jungle. I was prepared for everything, or so I thought. Rose was an older lady who was under eighty pounds and in a wheelchair. She was dying slowly and was in excruciating pain. On Sunday, after our church service, she had asked to pray with me. I was all ready to swoop in with encouraging words and pray for this kind, softspoken woman. I prayed first and everything seemed like it was just going to be one more day and one more prayer, then it happened. Rose prayed a short, simple, and powerful prayer that turned my world upside down. “My Lord and my God, help me suffer well. Amen!” This woman who was slowly wasting away and her organs were failing one after another, wasn’t praying for healing, she was asking God to help her suffer well. I was undone by that kind of powerful faith being lived out by this quiet and joyous woman of God. I spent the next four weeks in a spiritual cocoon where God was bringing me to a place of brokenness before Him where I was seeing the blessing of truly being dependent on God. Not that I’m there all the time, but I now know that my heart being dependent on God’s truth, love, and direction, is what I need to keep aiming at in my life. As My wife and I have experienced some significant struggles with loved ones, our prayers have been leaning more in the direction of, Lord help us depend on you and change our hearts, even if you don’t change the situation that we are experiencing
How has God used your past wounds to help others?
Colossians 1:24 Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church.
We all suffer in different ways. Suffering from the actions of others, and self-imposed suffering. Both of which can lead to redemptive suffering. This is when our problems and suffering lead to the blessings of others. Like Jesus who suffered and died on the cross, for our eternal blessing.
Romans 10:9 23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.
What is the Holy Spirit saying to you through these scriptures?
