PHILIPPIANS 4:13
Do you ever want to give up on life, to give up trying to be obedient, sharing, and being a true example of Christ. I wanted to give up when I was the one causing all the trouble in my family, even though I was trying so hard to have a true servant’s heart. Being homeschooled has made it twice as hard. Basically when my family and I aren’t doing mission trips, I am home almost all the time, oh, and this doesn’t make me sheltered! I’m faced with most trials that every teenage girl goes through. With Christ’s strength in me, even though it took, and still does, take time to learn that though we “always” do everything wrong and “never” seem to do anything right, God is in the midst of perfecting us, His precious beautiful daughters, into becoming strong women of character and righteousness. Once God gave me analogy, you have to use your imagination: We, our lives are plates, life’s trials and tribulations are the meals, and God is the dishwasher (except he never malfunctions and doesn’t make that disgusting smell that my family’s dishwasher does!). We go through one of the “meals” and it’s sticking to us and making us feel unclean but once we go through the “dishwasher” we come out looking more pure and clean than ever before. Do you understand it? Even though we always seem to get ourselves into a mess God still wants to clean us off and purify all the iniquities that seem to “stick” to us.
Jana Kroeker, 15, home school, Medicine Hat, Alberta, CA
Father, I just pray that You will make me clean.
Thank You for working to make me perfect even
when I feel like I’m doing everything wrong.