Developing Horizons Magazine (2).pdf Spring 2015 | Page 21

things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me” does
not mean, if I set my mind to it, I can be the MVP of
my team, the star employee of my company or purchase the nicest home in my community. It means
that whether I find myself in prison or a palace, with
much or with little, my circumstance will not rob me
of my peace, I am a chosen child of God, part of the
bride of Christ, purchased to bring glory to God no
matter what obstacles lay ahead, because Christ Jesus
strengthens me.

When I reflect on living with an eternal perspective

and centering my focus on the Blesser and not the
blessing, I am always reminded of my mother and her
Biblical approach to suffering. A few years ago while
working in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, just a few weeks
after the 2010 earthquake, I received a phone call
informing me that my mom had stage three ovarian
cancer. This was a major time of testing for our entire
family, but I remember watching the grace of the Lord
minister not only to my mother, but also through my
mother during this time. She refused to allow this testing to define her. Instead, she committed to use it as a
platform to share with her doctors, nurses and others
the hope within her. My mom trusted that God would
use her affliction as a means of bringing glory to His
name by drawing others to Himself through her approach to her cancer. There was never any blaming of
God for her cancer. She recognized that God allowed
her cancer, regardless of the outcome, for a divine
purpose. Now, I must be transparent, there were many
difficult days and times of weeping, but with integrity
I can say today that I thank God for my mom’s cancer.
Her suffering not
only drew her closer to her Savior, but also drew our
family and friends together into intense moments of

Craig and Joanna with kids
in the Dominican Republic
worship and prayer. There was a tangible understanding that in spite of the circumstances, Jesus is
worthy of our worship, that regardless of the afflictions, we will glorify God, and because of the pain, we
will look to Jesus not as a source of joy, but as our joy.

Therefore, let us be resolved not to allow the stress
and pressure that we face to define us; let it rather refine us evermore into the image of Jesus. Never allow
it to paralyze us, but propel us to the throne room of
grace where we plead with our Father, not to give us
a life of ease and safety and comfort, but to use our
circumstances as a divine tool to advance His Kingdom and glorify His Name. Pray to be used so that
everyone in your area of influence is given a reason
to find their peace and purpose in Christ alone. May
our affections be centered on Jesus, regardless of our
season, for the glory of God and the joy of all peoples.

“Once we evaluate our struggles

in light of eternity, we are then
able to consider them
but a raindrop in the ocean of
eternity.”

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