Sanctified

Today, I gave Guster, my guinea pig, a bath.  This was my first time bathing him, so I think we were both nervous.  Gus is usually a sweet-natured, quiet guinea pig; as soon as I tried to bathe him, however, he squirmed and contorted attempting to find a finger he could chomp into.  Somehow, I succeeded in keeping my fingers free from his rodent teeth, but it was quite a scene, I'm sure.  Plus, my peacemaking heart started feeling guilty for upsetting him (HA!  How silly...)

"Sanctification means to make something clean that was dirty, in the sense of evil or selfishness; it also means to set apart to be made pure or holy, to be made clean." (Floyd McClung, the Father Heart of God; p. 70).

When we are healed and sanctified, it's not always an instantaneous process.  Healing is often a longer process, involving time and discomfort.  Like Gus, we squirm and become a vicous version of ourselves.  I know I've talked a lot about my trials in the past 2 years...and it has certainly been one of the hardest times in my life.  God has taught me that He wants us involved in our healing process.  I often try to avoid thinking about the pain, and I do think that a lot of my healing process could've gone quicker if I was more willing to sit down and think about what I'm going through.  But there are dishes, video games, pinterest, blogs, videos, social outings, and plans that distract me enough that I can put it off for one more week or day, hour or minute.

Embrace the pain.


And be honest with God.  Quite a few times, I've gotten so tired of holding all the pain in that I've broken down and confronted God with my questions...questions like "Where are You," "How am I supposed to trust you when the only dad I've known has rejected me,"  "Why does this still hurt?"  And each time, He has proven to me that He can handle all my questions, all my doubts, all my fears, and all my pain.  He is here, He is the perfect Father that will never leave or forsake me, and one day I will live with Him where there is no pain!  He can handle your questions, Dearheart.  Ask them and be open to hearing what He has to say in response.

Wishing you love and hope in your journey,