Being cultivated and refined

Last night I was indulging myself in a Christian fiction book.  It's title is The First Gardener and its by Denise Hildreth Jones.  It was one of those books that you literally cry all the way through, but can't put down because you are rooting for the characters to successfully make it to the other side.  At the end, when things are beginning to come around, the gardener that prayed this family through some really hard things is talking with the main female character.  Here's what she says with a heart full of gratitude for both him and for God...and his reply:
     "Act humble if you will, but it's true.  You pressed us.  You pushed our buttons.  You opened our hearts.  Then you dug in like the gardener you are and tilled our very soil until a seed came to life."
     "Ain't never found hearts more worth diggin' in."

Finishing this book, my thoughts were all over the place (and it was midnight, so that's pretty normal for me).  This is exactly what God does.  He is our Master Gardener and He takes the time to prune us, encourage growth, takes the time to work with our picky selves, always knowing it was worth the time and effort He puts into it.  Never giving up on us. 

The following is what scribbled out of my hand/head after finishing the book (and listening to yesterday morning's sermon twice):
     Sometimes we get so busy seeing what we "lost"--what we've been stripped of or had ripped out of our grasp--that we totally miss what we have.
     There is not a soul on this earth that hasn't gone through some form of heartbreak.  100% of us have experienced some form of pain or an even that shook our lives.
     But it's what we choose to do with our life that is so very important.
     Am I going to choose to embrace life and whatever situation I am facing, or am I going to just endure "it" and take the chance on missing out on what God wanted to teach me?
     There are always going to be things that don't seem fair.  People will always share their opinions/assumptions and not be aware of the pain their words might cause.  Someone will always be available to rub you the wrong way.  You are guaranteed to lose a loved one sometime over the course of this life.  Life is full of losses of every shape and size.
     But God is bigger.  He has already overcome.  He has already won the battle and is victorious. He has already provided the ability to walk through any and all things we will ever face.
     And He knows what heart-wrenching pain is.  He watched His only Son be tortured and killed, ALLOWING it when He could have stepped in and stopped it.  BUT, He didn't--because He could see the bigger picture.  He knew the pain would be temporary and worth the cost.  That His going THROUGH the incredible pain of watching His Son die with the weight of all of our sin on His shoulders--would allow Him relationship with each of us.  He knows pain.
     And He feels our pain with us.  As well as our joys.  And He willingly arranges happenings that He knows will bless our very souls.
     He brings us back to life again.  He shows us what we have to live for and why the fight and the struggles are worth it.  He reminds us again and again that He loves us and is more than enough for us.  he holds our hands and walks us through it.
     And the process we go through makes us stronger.  But even more than that it gives us the gift of being able to come alongside someone else when their road is full of potholes, sinkholes, and flat-out missing parts.
     EVERYTHING we go through in life, the good and the bad and all that is in between, TRULY IS A GIFT.  It stretches us, molds us, refines us, and makes us more like Jesus.
     We just need to choose to keep focused on Him and fully trust that He still can see the bigger picture...and that He will see us through!

Cling to Him, take it to Him

Therefore, my beloved brethren whom I long to see, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord, my beloved. ... live in harmony in the Lord. ... Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, rejoice!  Let your gentle spirit be known to all men.  The Lord is near.  Phil 4:1, 2a, 4, 5

Life has so many ups and downs.  It can be overwhelming at times.  Its in those times that we need to just stop and remind ourselves of all the things that God has promised us, and take time to cling to Him and let Him speak to our weary souls.  You don't have to make an appointment to talk to God, all you have to do is cry out to Him...He is always there.  And His word is always powerful and calming.  He is every single thing that we need, at all times.  He will make Himself known to us as we cling to Him and seek Him out.  He sees us as His very own beloved children!  He never gets tired of us or frustrated and want to walk away.  There is not a thing you can do to stop His incredible love for you! 
And in those times where life just seems like it is too much...choose a heart of gratitude and thankfulness.  He will honor the choice you make to thank Him for the good in life despite the hard.  There is always something there that you can be thankful for.  Get your mind to focus on Him rather than on the things at the moment that are hard.
Looking at a crazy schedule and your brain is mush and there are things you HAVE to get done to keep up?  Take it to God, allow Him to build you up (that's me today)
Going through an adjustment stage after a big change in life?  Take it to God, lay it at His feet, give Him the control, thank Him for His constant provision and protection despite the changes
Lonely?  Go to God and let Him talk to your very soul.  You are His beloved child and He longs to spend time with you!
Absolutely anything...once laid at the feet of the cross and given to God...no longer seems so daunting and impossible.  After all, this same chapter later says that there is nothing that is impossible with God!