Marble and Sand

While scrolling mindlessly along the other day, taking a break from housework, I came to a complete halt after seeing this quote by Charles Spurgeon on the Instagram site: The Grace Scripts.

"We are too prone to engrave our trials in marble and our blessings in sand."

"Wow," I thought, "Isn't that so true?!"

It gave me pause. This was a real thought-provoker.

I could see myself in that quote, faithfully throwing up a quick, yet heartfelt "thank you" to God when things work out splendidly for me and for those I love, but moving on just as quickly once the note of thanks has been written, addressed, and sent on.

On the flipside... how many hours and hours in prayer have I spent asking God to intercede on my behalf for one thing or another. In this I am tenacious, unwilling to give it a rest. I know God doesn't mind that. He always welcomes His children. He always listens. He always answers.

But I wonder... does it hurt Him that I so easily forget His providence, His provision on a daily basis, when in the midst of crisis I hold onto Him with an iron grip.

The human condition is fickle.

I spend my days in prayer postures either of uplifted hands in praise or down on my knees before Him, prostrate, begging for His mercy, and honestly, my knees are a lot more worn out than my hands.

This is why I believe there is purpose in our pain and difficulty, and beauty to come out of our struggles. It's because these are the things, the moments, that draw us closer to the Lord.

If we never suffered in any way, if life was always blissfully happy, we might all too easily forget about God's blessings, His perfect care... our greatest need, and His rescue.

Imagine a world where no one ever suffered estranged relationships, no one lost a job, no financial worries, no loss of loved ones, no illness, no terminal diagnosis, etc., etc.

It would be Eden. And we had that. And even in the midst of that perfect world, that intimate relationship existing between us and God... we forgot the blesings we had.

Sin entered the picture and ruined everything. It drove a wedge between us and God that only Jesus and His perfect sacrifice could fix.

So...

Our trials serve. They serve to keep us grounded to the One who loves us more than we could ever imagine, the One who gave up His own Son to save a wretched people like us, the One who has ALWAYS had a better plan in mind for us, and the One who is eager to have us with Him again in that perfect world, the way it was always intended to be.

Oh, that we could see our trials in sand and our blessings in marble! Because that is what they are.

Trials, though they may be unwelcome guests, can work profound miracles of faith in our lives. And though for some they can last years, even a lifetime, they are but transitory, for it is God's greatest blessings of forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life that are forever.

"Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning." - Psalm 30:5