Accept Your Crosses

God heaps crosses on those He loves. You may ask, “Could He not make us good without making us so miserable?” He has not willed to do so. He is the Master. We can only be silent and adore His infinite wisdom without understanding it

God hides His work beneath a series of imperceptible events, both in grace and nature; and in this way He subjects us to the mysteries of faith. He opens our eyes by letting us realize our own weakness and evil through countless falls. (Francois Fenelon)

And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline and do not lose heart when He rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those He loves and punishes everyone He accepts as a son.”  Endure (choose to submit to) hardship as discipline.  God is treating you as sons.  For what son is not disciplined by his father?  (Hebrews 12:5-7)

Let Him turn a severe and displeased countenance upon you as much as He wants – He never loves you more than when He threatens! Whatever crosses may attend the Christian’s life, we need never lose that blessed peace of heart through which we accept every suffering, desiring no happiness that God denies.

For the commandment is a lamp, and the whole teaching [of the law] is light, and reproofs of discipline are the way of life (Proverbs 6:23).

Crosses are part of our daily bread.  God regulates the measure of them according to the things we really lack and require.  He knows what we need, even if we are ignorant of it.  The more we are afraid to bear crosses, the more we need them.  We should be fully aware of the magnitude of our disease by seeing the severity of the remedies that our Spiritual Physician sees good to apply!  Accept suffering as therapeutic to building faith and character.

My brothers, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.  But let patience have its perfect work [in you], that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing (James 1:2-4).

The best state to be in is the one in which God’s hand holds you. Do not look beyond it and be content to accept His Will from one moment to another, in the spirit of mortification and renunciation.

Blessed is the man You discipline, O Lord, the man You teach from Your law.  You grant him relief from days of trouble (Psalm 94:12-13).

No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful.  Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have indeed been trained by it (Hebrews 12:11).

Though He [Jesus] was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered (Hebrews 5:8).

The ultimate measure of a friend is where they stand in times of challenge.  In the same way, we will never know (in a personal way) the faithfulness of Jesus apart from adversity and Him sharing it with us.  God is in the process of engineering circumstances through which He can reveal Jesus to each one of us.

When we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned with the rest of the world (1 Corinthians 11:32).

No matter what you feel, God is always good.

Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its own (Matthew 6:34).

Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:32).