Inner Difficulties

Inner Difficulties

Isn’t it sad that such difficulties arise in the church among truly God-fearing souls? Not at all! For difficulties are God’s servants to advance the inner life—transformation into divine nature.

It is God’s desire and will that we should advance as far as possible on the inner ways, that we should overcome the strongest enemies possible, and forge ahead victoriously through the greatest difficulties possible—even those that are unbelievably great.

These difficulties cannot arise from nothing; neither can they come from people outside. Such difficulties are only useful in the beginning; afterwards they become too easy. Then the difficulties must come from our own midst if they are to carry any weight.

When these difficulties come, we can safely be of good courage, for they are the very ones that—more than anything else—are invaluable in giving us a greater hope of partaking of God’s nature than we could otherwise entertain.

As far as it concerns us personally, such difficulties are excellent. But what about the dear soul who causes us grief and the difficulty? If only he could also gain some benefit from it! Yes, this is how the love of Christ thinks. Both God and godly people have this desire. But whether this happens, and the degree to which it happens, always depends on the person himself.

There is a certain grief and care that we ought to have for our brother, but there is also a sorrowful, unnecessary, and useless care that we should exchange for rest, believing that God makes the best possible out of each one of us.

When we think that our brother seems too impossible, we can wonder how this can be—that a member of the body of Christ can really be so unreasonable and “impossible.” There are those on the outside who would have acquitted themselves much better in this case!!! The solution to this puzzle is hidden way down in secret places, covered by an abundance of longsuffering and grace. The solution cannot be bought with money, but with my self-life.

If someone wants to find the solution, he has to go the way until he arrives at the solution. He will arrive at it in due time, and then he will understand it just as clearly as everything else over which he has received light.

By God’s wise and omnipotent leading (He has even numbered the very hairs on our head), our steps are led in such a way that everything turns out for salvation, for the common good.

When two people collide, it is either to their mutual destruction or for the progress of one of them. For example, the so-called “impossible” person is led together with an excellent, faithful, and persevering soul so that the so-called “impossible” person, through the perseverance of the persevering person can eventually obtain precisely the salvation which it is possible for God to impart to him. At the same time the faithful and persevering soul through the other person’s “impossible behavior,” shall have even more of his self-life brought to the light, so that, by continuing to die, he will become even more faithful, persevering, wise, and good.

Greetings in the love of Christ to everyone who thus finds himself in the Potter’s hand.