Depression Clung to Her

There was a young woman, broken by the abortion her husband forced her to have. Depression clung to her like a too-tight garment that long since needed to be discarded. God did not stop that abortion. But remember this: He did not order it either.

What the Lord did for this woman was to teach her the greatest lesson of her life...that justice can go hand-in-hand with mercy. The wrath of the God whose commandment shouts, "Thou shalt not kill!" is the same God who gave His very own Son to die on a cross in payment for her sin of murder. God's justice was satisfied by His mercy.

When she bowed her knee to the Lord Jesus Christ, the only one who could save her, God threw her sins away and began to paint the portrait that only He could see in her life. I know this for a fact, because that young woman was me.

A Man Shattered

There once was a man shattered by the alcoholism of his mother and father. His deepest resolution was to never become a drunk like them. And he wasn't. He was a drug addict. Marijuana, speed, cocaine, and LSD were all familiar companions. One full-time job supported his unhappy wife and children, and another supported his habits.

Demons of doubt, defeat, and lust pushed all joy from his life. Anger and tantrums burst out at his family, when all he really wanted was to love them and be loved in return. His sins threatened to overpower him.

Driven to suicidal despair, this man took one last dying gasp. He gave his life to Jesus Christ. God took the blackness of 38 years of suffering and made it an outline for the rich beautiful colors that would emerge on this man's face. God splashed a heavenly white over the stains of sin and debauchery and painted a Bible in his hands so that he could minister as a chaplain to those in jail who are hurting just as he was hurting. I know this to be true, because this man is my husband.

Who Could Have Guessed?

If either one of us had hurled abuse at God instead of crying out to Him for help, the pictures would have been so very different. In submitting to the Lord Jesus, we gave Him the control that He was waiting for, so that He could start building His truth and His righteousness into our lives. All the pain has faded away into the background and what we see close up is His joy and beauty. The prominent color of our portraits is His love. But who could have guessed? Out of the ashes of our sinful lives, the Lord God is making shining trophies of His grace (Ephesians 2:6-7).