Disagreeable Mess or Opportunity

Set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

“All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, 25 but the word of the Lord remains forever.”

1 Peter 1

Our natural life in this world will have many troubles, disappointments and hurts.  But, Jesus has promised that he has overcome the world.  By His Spirit and power, I can respond to painful situations with grace and have hope in the face of darkness.

It is so easy for me to respond to disagreeable circumstances in my Self-power.  Then I manifest things like impatience, irritation, and depression.  Yet, disagreeable circumstances are the only time when I can genuinely show Jesus' presence and life within me.  It is only then that His strength can work through me to do and respond in ways that are not natural to man or to me.  Misunderstanding, rejection, hurt, loss, disappointment and so on can become wonderful opportunities to respond in the spirit of Jesus.

The grace to respond in the power of Christ depends on the presence of His Spirit in my spirit and my ability to humbly acknowledge the truth of His Word.

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We have to form habits to express what God's grace has done in us. It is not a question of being saved from hell, but of being saved in order to manifest the life of the Son of God in our mortal flesh, and it is the disagreeable things which make us exhibit whether or not we are manifesting His life.  -- My Utmost for His Highest

That life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.

—2co 4:10