I was only able to get through chapter 4 this week. A few days of a flare had me unable to concentrate while reading or writing. So today we’re just covering chapter four. If you went on to chapter 5 you’ll have a head start for next week. We’ll plan to cover 5 & 6.
Do you ever feel broken? Like a puzzle that’s been dropped on the floor? Sara mentions in chapter four how she felt broken. But it was in this brokenness that God was able to step in and put the pieces back together.
I think sometimes we go through life unaware that there are pieces missing. But in times of brokenness, and times where we are left on our face before God, He is able to come in with a missing piece and we start to feel whole again.
I have been through things that have broken my life. And I trust Him to never leave me there. ~ Sara Frankl
A while back I wrote a post on why I believe the saying “God won’t give you more than you can handle” is a myth. I believe God allows us to go through things we can’t handle on our own so we learn to trust Him. Sara speaks to this point when she says,
He is the Father Who will pick me up when I am fallen, broken, hurt, tired. And He is the Father Who fixes me in those broken places. He fixes my spirit, my heart, my sadness, my loneliness. He brings joy and peace and refuge so I am stronger now than before I was broken. ~ Sara Frankl
Many times I’ve said I wouldn’t be able to deal with certain things in life and then watched as some of those things have come to be. If we are trusting in and relying upon God, He will give us the strength/patience/self-control or whatever else we need for that time in our life at the time we need it.
When you have accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior, the bible tells us that the Holy Spirit is with us. He becomes our source of strength and the reservoir to draw from.
I have appreciated Sara’s ability to write of the trials and deep struggles of her illness.
I really don’t worry too much in my life anymore. The one time worry tends to get the better of me, though, is when any sort of doctor’s appointment comes around. …..specialists of any kind tend to get the better of me and my nerves, thanks to experiences with doctors who have been impersonal, quick to judge and dismissive. ~ Sara Frankl
Can you relate? I saw a few doctors before I found one that would listen to me long enough to know what tests to run and what diagnosis to give. Still, going to the doctor is something I dread. I always wonder if there’s a where point he’ll think I’m a hypochondriac or whiner.
Are you learning how to trust God through your illness?
What I didn’t realize at the time was that my trust had conditions built into the fine print. ~ Sara Frankl
Oh, conditions! Boy, that line hit home with me. I have conditions to my faith that I don’t even realize until that condition isn’t met and my faith wavers and doubts surface. I tend to see those as a lack of God’s actions instead of a lack of my faith. Defiantly something I’m working on!
