What do we do when our desires and our circumstances don’t line up? The times we find ourselves chugging along with things going just about the way we’d like them to are easy! We can easily give God praises for the blessings we so readily see (and are happy to see!) But what about when there is a gap–in our desires and our circumstances? What about when we find ourselves–in other words–in suffering?
These times purify us firstly by allowing us to examine more closely our desires. What do we cherish? What do we seek? What gives us comfort? peace? What do we sacrifice for these things? If you are like me, I could answer these with any number of temptations I daily face–harmony in relationships, approval of others, financial ease…but what if my deepest and driving desire is to know and love Christ more?
Christ’s example in the Garden of Gethsemane the eve before his crucifixion ministers to us on this question. We see in Mark 14:36 that the Lord is stricken and troubled by the path that lay before him–“Everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. YET not my will but your will be done.” While the Lord may use this gap between desires and circumstances to reveal and realign our desires, it is ultimately a submission to His plan–a bowing down to his supremacy and majesty in our lives–that places us in abiding faith. May you see each day that indeed, the Lord is good and to be trusted in every way that His plans for us not only reign but are good!
