August 7, 2022 - INSCRIPTIONS FROM THE HEART

By Cheryl Zamora

Let us reflect on what our Lord Jesus Christ did for us. He walked the path of surrendered love to the Father and always chose what is good and true and beautiful. So should we! And, by His grace, we can do it as well.

We are not only saved FROM — sin, death and separation — we are saved FOR, a new way of living!  To be a Christian is to live and to love as Jesus did, even in the midst of difficulties, suffering, setbacks and trials. 

As a believer of our Lord Jesus Christ, we are admonished to embrace even that which we do not want — or like — yes even suffering — as one of the means for our transformation. And we have been given the grace to accept all difficulties. In fact, enduring life’s troubles and adversities can become, when embraced in love, a path to our becoming more like Christ.

I honestly believe that even undeserved and unmerited suffering, when joined in love to the sufferings of Jesus Christ, can produce extraordinary fruit within us & around us.

How do we treat those circumstances that cause us to struggle? How do we deal with what we find unpleasant?

Do we practice an “adult” form of avoidance and run, acting as if it will all just go away like when children cover their eyes? Or do we believe that even unpleasant things and even “difficult” people can actually be gifts from the hands of a loving God who invites us to walk in the way of His Son?

How do we deal with unresolved conflicts or troubling relationships? Do we work toward resolution, making “love our aim” (1 Cor. 14:1 TLB) or do we avoid them, thinking they will just go away if we pretend they don’t exist?

What is our attitude toward suffering, struggle and difficulty in life? I pray that we follow the way of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (and I am a work in process, so help me God!)

Let us pick up our cross, and walk in the path of the One whose love and sacrifice, made on our behalf, secured our true freedom. It is on that road where we will find the way to making choices which not only affect the world around us — but change us in the process.