Joy!

 But let all who take refuge in You be glad,
         Let them ever sing for joy;
         And may You shelter them,
         That those who love Your name may exult in You. 

Psalm 5:11

Have you ever battled your flesh during a hard circumstance?  On the one hand, you feel sad and discouraged, but you know the truth, that in Christ there is joy in ALL circumstances.  

How about this: have you ever thanked God for a trial that you're facing - while you're facing it?  I think most of us can look back at trials and see how God worked in our lives and be grateful for the work He did in us, even if the trial itself was miserable, but thanking him right in the midst of it . . . that's not easy, friends.

I know.  He's teaching me right this very minute!  I don't like being in the middle of a yucky circumstance.  I don't like feeling hurt.  But I'll tell you what, feeling Him intensely - needing Him intensely - is pretty powerful.  Seeing him change parts of me that need to be changed is exciting.

It's funny though how we ask God to change things for weeks, months, years - and then when He does, it's not at all like we envisioned.  I prayed for the first 10 years of my marriage that God would make me a better homemaker, because my husband needs a neat and orderly home, and it just wasn't that important to me.  I'm not sure exactly how I thought he would change that in me, but it sure isn't happening like I thought it would!  Guess what He did?  He changed my heart, and now when the house starts to get a little hairy, I start to feel a little harried.  Yeah, you guessed it - he actually gave me a desire for a neat and orderly home!  Who knew He'd do that??

He does this in so many arenas of our lives.  We ask, He answers.  Not always the way we think He will, and it sure isn't always pleasant, but His desire for our lives isn't that everything always feels just fantastic.  His desire for our lives is that we are conforming to His will more every day.  That we're buddying up to Him more every day.  That we are more like Him every day.

So friends, when I tell you that you can trust your heart in His capable hands, it's true.  I can't promise it will feel good when He chips off those rough edges, but I can certainly promise that His glory will shine through.  

And that feels amazing.