Lord cannot always spare you and your family and complete His redemptive work in those around you.

For it is often to be observed of the shallower men, that they are the very last to despond. It is the glory of the bladder that nothing can sink it; it is the reproach of a box of treasure, that once overboard it must drown

I have known exceptional people who have endured severe trials while others, at least on the surface, seem to have lived charmed lives.

The kind of trust God wants us to have cannot be learned in comfort and ease.

When God wants to send you a gift, he wraps it up in a problem. The bigger the gift that God wants to send you, the bigger the problem he wraps it up in.

Between you and anything you want to accomplish you will always find problems or obstacles of some kind. This is why success is sometimes defined as the ability to solve problems.

The Lord sometimes uses sorrow in our lives to deepen us," Miss Lucy says. "This is one of those times." "Why do we have to be deep?" I wonder aloud. Miss Lucy looks at me as if she's never considered that question. "Because what good are we if we're shallow? He can use us when we have some depth. He had sorrows, so why shouldn't we?

joy' in Phillippians is a defiant 'Nevertheless!' that Paul sets like a full stop against the Philippians' anxiety...

Gary and Betsy Ricucci point out, "Our Lord has sovereignly ordained that our refining process take place as we go through difficulties, not around them. The Bible is filled with examples of those who overcame as they passed through the desert, the Red Sea, the fiery furnace and ultimately the cross. God doesn't protect Christians from their problems—he helps them walk victoriously through their problems."

Don't run from the struggles of marriage. Embrace them. Grow in them. Draw nearer to God because of them. Through them you will reflect more of the spirit of Jesus Christ. And thank God he has placed you in a situation where your spirit can be perfected.

A heavyweight boxing champion who dodges all serious contenders to consistently fight marshmallows is derided and ridiculed—and rightly so. Christians who dodge all serious struggle and consciously seek to put themselves in whatever situations and relationships are easiest are doing the same thing—they are coasting, and eventually that coasting will define them and—even worse—shape them.

The dominant characteristic of an authentic spiritual life is the gratitude that flows from trust - not only for all the gifts that I receive from God, but gratitude for all the suffering. Because in that purifying experience, suffering has often been the shortest path to intimacy with God.