Thankfulness and Friendship

We are 8 days in the one month when everyone publicly declares they are thankful. Unfortunately, I just can't do it right now. I'm so beyond overwhelmed with the Glory of God, that I just cannot possibly select one thing to be thankful for.
So today, I want to write about friendship. You see, I have this special friend that my heart is crying for right now. I have held onto this pain for her for several months now and haven't even responded to a couple of her cries for prayers just because I wanted the right words. Remember, I am a writer. Finding those words are difficult for me. Yeah, I plug out a good 2000 words a day if need be, but I can't seem to find the right words to help heal my friend's heart. I've done what I know how to do by calling out to Jesus for those words, but as you can see, they just aren't quite there yet. But He's speaking to me right at this very moment. I feel His presence and feel His charge. He's asked me to write this blog post for her. He's asked me to share love with her that I have held back in fear.
So, while the rest of this blog will be for my beautiful, sweet friend it will help you too. God is calling me to write this. It's not me. It's Him!
Sometimes it just isn't going to make sense.
"For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion." Romans 9:15

 There are a lot of things about God that are difficult to understand. This verse shows one of those things. God selects certain people for certain things. He picks and chooses among people!
Sometimes we are at the feet of Jesus begging for something we feel we need, but it seems He is not listening. Sometimes we are seeking God's Will, asking him to remove everything that hinders us from being His servant, our life is upside down. It just does not make sense! Why isn't He protecting us from bad things? Why doesn't He rain down blessings on us? I mean, haven't we been obedient? Haven't we sought after Him even in those times of biggest stress?  I think about Noah. God blessed him, right? Sometimes, like him, it makes sense. Noah was chosen because God saw that he was righteous (Genesis 7:1). Makes sense, right?
But think about it. I remember more examples in the Bible that just don't make sense when it comes to people getting what I believe they deserve.

Why would God choose Jacob over Esau?? Jacob tricked his father into blessing him by lying!! (Genesis 27:19). That makes no sense at all.

And what about Job. Wow. He certainly suffered for God to prove a point to Satan. Satan's a jerk. Why would God waste His time proving something to him?? That doesn't make sense.

The Israelites. They were tired. Tired of wandering in the wilderness. Tired of manna bread, manna burgers, manna cereal, manna, manna, manna. They complained and grumbled. God sent fiery snakes to bite them and they died (Numbers 21:4-6). WHAT? Holy cow, I've been frustrated before and am thankful that I survived that! They were just frustrated. That doesn't make sense.

Romans 9:18-21 says:
"Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.  Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?  Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?  Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?" 

When I stop and think about it, I see where God may just have known what He was doing, at least some of the time. For instance, the grumpy, frustrated Israelites, what if the grumbling isn't all they ended up doing. What if they all decided to go back to Egypt?

I can sit around and compare my life to other people and see where I have had some really awful things happen to me, things that seem to to be truly unfair, mean or just bizarre. The more I try to be in God's Will, the more things happen, it seems.
So, I should just give up and walk away from God because sometimes I feel like I am going crazy. Right? But wait a minute, WHY haven't I gone crazy? Why  haven't I buckled under the load? I've not been squished like a bug, but why?

Despite the frustration, despite the sadness and utter uncontrol I have, God has sustained me. He is the Potter and I am the clay. Even if I can't see any good coming out of my trials, I must have faith that he knows what He is doing. Some of the trials have made me stronger, some have helped other people, and some have no results that I can see.

I doubt Job knew why God allowed all the sorrows to be heaped on him. The Bible doesn't say he knows that, so we have no reason to believe he did.

A scripture of encouragement:

"Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.  For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ."
2Cor 1:3-5


God WILL comfort us and help us through our trials and tribulations, my friends! At the very least, we will be able to have the strength to comfort others. Have you ever been able to minister to someone by saying, "Been there myself"? Sometimes that is the only way to reach out to someone.

Jesus suffered. Why do we think we are so better than He that we shouldn't??

So when the trials get heavier than you think you can hold, remember that God will keep you from being crushed completely flat. When you look back you will see His hand was there all along, holding you up.

My love goes out to my Sister in Christ. I hope this brings some encouragement to you to know that you are not alone in this and while it is easy for some to say it shall pass, I can say, I've been there Sister! You will not be crushed, so hold tight to the One who is always there for you, holding you up and loving you strong!