To Bring Him Glory

"Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you." 

1 Peter 4:12-14

One of my favorite Bible stories is found in John 9. While Jesus is in the midst of His earthly ministry, He and His disciples pass by a man who had been blind from birth. Jesus’ disciples assumed, as was common at that time, that either the man or his parents had committed a grievous sin and the man’s blindness was a direct result of that sin. When they asked Jesus what sin had been committed, Jesus responded with this shocking statement:

“Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.”

Wait. What?!

You mean to tell me that neither this man nor his family had committed any sin and yet he was afflicted with condition? Blind. No light, no color, no hope. A burden, a beggar, a blight on his community. No possibility of a future through no fault of his own.

It’s at that point that Jesus stoops to the ground, makes a clay paste, coats the man’s eyes with the paste, and commands him to go wash in the pool of Siloam. Upon exiting the pool, the man is miraculously healed. He could see! The man then proceeds to proclaim the miracle to all who will listen. In fact, he proclaims it so much, it angers the local Pharisees who question both the man and his parents over this miracle. The man’s response to the Pharisees’ questioning just cracks me up! He repeatedly says, “I don’t know who Jesus is, whether He is a common sinner or the Son of God; all I know is that I was blind and now I can see. He healed me.” (JRV, Janelle Rodriguez version 😉).

“But that the works of God should be made manifest in him.”

The blind man endured a lifetime of hardship for this one encounter with Jesus. A chance to be healed and to bring God glory through his healing. A chance to show for all of eternity what God can do and continues to do. A chance to show future generations that some of our greatest blessings come through our most difficult trials. Our lowest points, our suffering, our most difficult trials give God the opportunity to be made manifest in our lives. We do not always know the purpose of our hardship. We cannot understand the mind of God. All we can do is remain faithful and continue to bring him glory.

There is so very much to be learned from this short story in John. Christ’s love, His compassion, His healing – but most of all His glory. Don’t be surprised or discouraged when you go through trials, but rejoice and be glad when God’s glory is revealed. 

I had a lot of fun stamping and creating ephemera for this page. 😊 I used the adorable Life & Lemons stamp set from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps. I first stamped the lemons on the background; then stamped the lemon and leaf, lemon slice, and lemon mason jar on regular cardstock paper, colored with ink and colored pencils and fussy cut them all out. I then tied a little piece of ribbon around the mason jar, inserted the lemon slice on the lid of the jar, and taped all the ephemera to the page. I then finished my stamping, highlighting, and added some splotches of color to finish out the page. So fun!

 

Would you take a minute today to read the story of the blind man in John 9 and pray for God's glory to be revealed through your life?

Much love in Christ, 

Janelle

@journalingjoy