The Messy Middle
If you've ever traveled to the mountains you know how spectacular the view can be. Whether you drive it or hike it, once you reach the top, you've earned the opportunity to take it all in. Celebrate the success and make some memories! You might even stay awhile! We rented a cabin in Pidgeon Forge, TN once and had to drive up a mountain to get to it. It was stunning! We stayed for a week and it's still one of our favorite trips ever. But, as much as we loved the beauty of the mountaintop and its surroundings, we couldn't stay up there forever.
We live so much of our lives in the middle. Often it's the messy middle. Sometimes it's a delicate dance between challenges and other times it's more like a bulldozer wreaking havoc and leaving a wake of destruction. You know what happens in the messy middle? We learn to lean on Jesus. It's where we discover that our true strength comes from the Lord. We find our identity in Christ and we choose to place our trust fully in God. The messy middle changes us. When I complained to the Lord the loudest, while in a hard place, I cried out that things would never be the same after this mess! The One who loves me most, and sacrificed His life to redeem me, quietly whispered... 'I don't want you to stay the same.'
Philippians 1:6 (NLT) tells us, "And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns." The good work often requires hard stuff; but, in the middle of it, we have His promise that He won't leave us to figure it out alone. He will continue HIS work in us til Jesus comes back!
Read more devotions written by Denise Harper at Treasured Inside
https://deniseharper.blog
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