"Vocation, temptation, and formation are life-long challenges. We are called not once, but day in and day out, and we will never know precisely where our demons will appear. This lifelong tension between vocation and temptation opens up for us the difficult but promising task of listening to the church, the Book, and our heart, thus discovering the real presence of God's Spirit within and among us."
"We will never be without struggle. But when we persevere with hope, courage, and confidence, we will come to fully realize in our innermost being that through the downward road of Christ we will enter with him into his glory. So let us be grateful for our vocation, resist our temptation, and be ever committed to a life of ongoing formation."
The above passages are from Henri Nouwens' book, The Selfless Way of Christ.
I keep asking God to fix in me what is broken; mend the holes; repair the worn-out. And I believe He will to some extent, but the work will never be finished here on earth but in Heaven, therefore the struggles still remain. Temptations of all sorts will still trip us up; we will hurt the ones we love the most; we will lose ground momentarily until we press forward again.
Is it worth all the struggles?
Yes, I believe it is.
Through the tough and lonely times we have the option to grow. We can choose to be changed and transformed by our circumstances or allow them to weigh us down in despair. Each victory over temptation equips us to conquer the next. Each heartache can bring us closer to a comforting God who understands the pain and weeps with us.
The formation that happens to us can be amazing if we allow it.
No comments:
Post a Comment