trials...

This year has (already!) been full of them.

And they keep coming.

Life is tough. And not just because I'm getting older and some things are naturally harder. I'm becoming more painfully aware of sin and of the brokenness and destruction it brings. Just look at the news and you'll see how the world is just crumbling under it. And not just on a global scale....effects of sin get personal and hit home more often then I'd like to admit.

Real life is messy and nothing like the movies or television shows I wish were my life: scripted, somewhat predictable, rehearsed and played out to perfection--because actors always get do-overs, seen from every person's perspective, accompanied by mood music (I really wish my life had a soundtrack).

In my last post I mentioned how David's life and his psalms offer validation to the often harsh reality of our circumstances. But reading about David and others in the Bible sometimes makes me feel the opposite. It's so easy for me to think that their faith was effortless because I get to see how their story plays out. I get to see what happens next and how God brings them through. I get to see the bigger picture and what circumstances, both good and bad, look like in context. But my life isn't like that. I don't know how my current situations are going to turn out. I don't always see them coming and I don't know how they end. And that's really hard for me.