THE GOLD MINE IN OUR MIDST

I've been noticing God; His schemes, His process, His moves.  And just as the Bible stories are absurdly outrageous, so are our personal lives.  From floating ax heads to slaying giants to raising dead people, our Bible studies flourish with what "can't be" actually becoming.

And what I dearly love about God is His knack for taking the unusual and the unexpected and making both productive.  These are His stories.  This is His Life!

To grasp what I'm about to say regarding the gold mine in our midst, I remind you that God works so many things backward to our flesh-thinking.  To keep we give.  To be first we must volunteer to be last.  To be strong is to operate from our weakness.  To live we die.

Get it?  Then consider.

The gold mine in our midst is our depression.  Our bad days are pure gold.  These are primed for a profound discovery that will set our days ablaze with wonder and meaning.  We will do well to awaken to such treasure.

"Where's the gold in this, Terry."

Suffering from the blues tends to sink our ship; at least they surely give it a mighty try. Yet, before you buy into their selling you down the river, reconsider.  What value would God have in these dark moments?  Why would I dare thank Him for such misery? There are two reasons.

First, it is often at our loneliest times that we tend to give God greater notice.  We find that we may have given it our all and such wasn't enough.  Perplexed and down, we can/should turn to Him for rescue and relief.

Second, the gold mine is also that these drastic moments of depression are valuable reminders of how others are feeling.  When we awaken to the fact that we are to live to encourage others, it is from this foundational doctrine that our gold mine begins to thrive.  Our misery is transformed into understanding how and where others ail.

When we believe this about our struggles, we are suddenly awakened to a new world of meaning and productivity.  Our troubles aren't present to make us miserable.  No, we shall use them as beneficial in that we have a deep compassion for those who struggle in similar fashion.  Our empathy becomes assistance for our neighbors.

Good for us.  Good for them.  The Gold Mine in our midst is useful, meaningful, and necessary.  Discouragement then takes a back seat to the profound opportunities of our every day.  They no longer are allowed to take the wheel....but we will allow them to energize us.