In the Sculptor's Hands

Inspired to pick up one of my favorite books,Trustful Surrender to Divine Providence: The Secret of Peace and Happiness, last night, I read the following:

“Do not let ourselves be troubled when we are sometimes beset by adversity, for we know that it is meant for our spiritual welfare and carefully proportioned to our needs, and that a limit has been set to it by the wisdom of the same God who has set a bound to the ocean.  Sometimes it might seem as if the sea in its fury would overflow and flood the land, but it respects the limits of its shore and its waves break upon the yielding sand.  There is no tribulation or temptation whose limits God has not appointed so as to serve not for our destruction be for our salvation.  God is faithful, says the Apostle, and will not permit you to be tempted (or afflicted) beyond your strength, but it is necessary for you to be so, since through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God in the steps of the redeemer, who said of Himself, Did not the Christ have to suffer all these things before entering into His Glory.”  If you refused to accept these tribulations you would be acting against your best interest.  You are like a block of marble in the hands of the sculptor.  The sculptor musts chip, hew and smooth it to make it into a statue that is a work of art.  God wishes to make us the living image of Himself.  All we need to think of is to keep still in His hands while He works on us, and we can rest assured that the chisel will never strike the slightest blow that is not needed for His purposes and our sanctification; for, as St. Paul says, the will of God is your sanctification.”

God has been so faithful in sending me trials... Yesterday I hit the knees of my heart!  My disposition was terrible and my behavior was FAR from Marion.  I pray to endure the trials He sends me by relying on Him and not myself.  When I try to do it myself, I am never met with success.  

When God speaks to me through 2 or more channels, I pay attention.  He, over the course of the most trying days (the last 3) spoke to me through my husband, my parish priest, and spiritual / devotional reading (Trustful Surrender to Divine Providence)...  I came to understand, through His grace, that trials are just that...  they are trials, they are not supposed to be easy; we suffer through them.  They have done their job, if at the end, we are better for it and see God’s hand during them and praise Him after for His faithfulness to us.  We are to grow from them and be better off in the end.

God be praised for His faithfulness to us!  I also read, this morning of His faithfulness, in times of trials in Micah 7:20, “You will show your faithfulness and constant love to your people.”