There is always a silver lining, right?

isaiah61 3

 


 

To me the silver linings are the blessings which the Lord gives us in exchange for the sadness, heartaches and concerns we experience in this fallen world.

Sometimes we make bad choices and experience consequences for those sins, other times we experience pain because of someone we love and their choices, and sometimes the heartache is just the result of this fallen world.

 

Below is a list of heartaches I have exchanged for the beauty of Hope given from the Lord.

Hope after my mom’s terminal diagnosis………..a closer relationship with my Dad.

Hope after being fired and run out of town…………God helped the church stand up and heal from people who were controlling it and were not listening to Him.

Hope after being a coach of a basketball team who never won a game all session long………..leading in character rather than competitiveness.

Hope after more debt than I ever imagined…………..paying it off one payment at a time.

Hope after my husband had an affair……………I am valuable and important to God, something I had totally forgotten.

Hope after leaving one job for another that was worse………….allowing God to help me discover how He created me and how that relates to my work.

Hope after a saddle pulmonary embolism (blood clot)……………realization that God saved me, (He was the only one who could have) He has more for me to do here on earth.

Hope after divorce……………God blessed me with a husband who loves and cherishes me,  He also made me a (step) mom.

Hope after letting go of a business I loved…………finding coaching and a new way to minister to others.

 

There are many more complete statements I could share with you as I am sure you have a long list yourself.

BUT There are also others statements which I have not heard the Lord reveal the part after the …… yet.

Hope after infertility……………………..

Hope after miscarriage………………

Hope after watching my dad disappear with Alzheimer’s disease……….

 

I know God is faithful.  I will be able to complete these statements someday because He Loves Me.  As I walk with Him, I become more like Him, and I can see these things through His eyes.  The silver linings. . . .

What silver linings have you seen in your life’s pain?


 to provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, a mantle of praise instead of a spirit of despair.” “Then people will call them “Oaks of Righteousness”, “The Planting of the LORD”, in order to display his splendor.   Isaiah 61:3

Rayna Neises: A Season of Caring