Dear friends and family,
I am just beginning to rise out of the darkness again after 4 days of being very sick again from the effects of the chemo. I get very discouraged with myself at how weak in spirit I am as I go through this struggle. However today was a good day. I have so much difficulty reading scripture when I am feeling ill so I am so very grateful that all of you are praying for me when I can not.
Today I was reading a book from Max Lucado called "God Will Carry You Through" and the chapter was titled "Does this struggle serve a purpose?" It is about a man named Howard Rutledge and how he came to appreciate his time as a POW in Vietnam. He talked about his spiritual awakening and how he wanted to know more about the part of him that would never die. He said, it took prison to show me how empty life is without God.
Few of us will ever have to experience the horrors of a POW camp. Yet many of us will spend time behind the bars of life where we feel weak, helpless and vulnerable. There is purpose in these struggles, it helps us to become more dependent on God. When my faith is tested and I feel discouraged I know that God is still at work in me and that all will be for His Glory.
Philippians 1:6 "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
So often when I do not feel like I am making growth in my spiritual life or when I am distressed over my shortcomings I need only to remember His promise that God will help me grow in grace until He has completed the work in my life.
Thank you all so very much for holding us up during these trials. With all our love and gratitude,
Mary and the Vogrinc Family