Wisdom from C.S. Lewis

My Sunday night life group is studying C. S. Lewis, his books and thoughts. Here is a quote from his book, The Problem of Pain:

"God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world."

It seems I keep reading about pain in my devotionals and everywhere. Pain is so much a part of this life. God created a perfect world and placed two imperfect people in that world. Sin entered the world and with it pain. For that reason, we will have pain and suffering through out lives; however, God gets our attention through our pain to help us grow and mature.

I have been listening to Chonda Pierce, Christian comedian as I have been walking in the mornings at the gym. Even though she is an extremely funny comedian, she also have suffered from clinical depression as well as some major deaths in her life including her husband after 31 years of marriage. She says, "Rehearse in the dark what you learned in the light." This says to me that when things are going well, we need to soak up the goodness of God so we can remember that goodness when things aren't going well. God is good no matter what is going on in our lives!

Yes, I have been walking and climbing stairs in the morning at the Baptist church gym like a dedicated athlete. March 11, I leave for 2 weeks in Israel and Egypt. The end of the trip will be the opportunity to climb Mt. Sinai which has ONLY 3,750 steps to the top! I may not be able to do due to my atrophied heart muscle--nothing that is dangerous to exert myself but makes me very winded when I do. But I will give it my best shot. The picture is the gym where I walk and climb.

Psalm 34:15 - "The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ear are attentive to their cry." This confirms God is still good when we are in pain. His ear is particularly attentive to our suffering and when we need to cry out to him for help. God is faithful--I know that from my experience and you can too!

Today I am thankful for:

1. Not still living in Wisconsin with all the cold temps there!
2. A beautiful day of serving people.
3. A new huge island in my kitchen which is great for food preparation.
4. Spending time with the twins tonight and getting lots of hugs and kisses! They are almost 14 months now.
5. Going to see my sister next week in Boerne, Texas.
6. Warm temps this weekend to enjoy.
7. My special friend, Henry, coming over last night to help me cook lots of food for shut ins at church.
8. Warm houses on the very cold days.
9. Walking in the gym and climbing stairs to prepare my body for my trip.
10. Knowing God is hearing my cry when I need him the most.