Hey friends, how are you today? Really… how are you? Our weather has been absolutely beautiful, warm, bright, sunny days. Jazz has once again, been vying for space near the open (did you get that? I said ‘open’) kitchen window.

How was your week? My days throughout the week were wonderful, although some days were certainly not picture perfect. But even in days like these, we’ve been reminded to ‘count it all joy’. On our own this is never an easy concept to accept, and the practice of this concept is almost impossible without our full surrender to the Lord of the Universe. Who likes to surrender to an unknown outcome? Except that’s not what we are actually doing, is it? We do not surrender our will; we do not give our troubles over to an uncertain future. We do not focus on the outcome of troubles because perhaps the solution may be the opposite of what we desired, in fact the answer to our problems may even temporarily break our hearts or even disappoint us.

Yes… life as a Christian does not exempt us from trials and tribulations, far from it actually. Life brings trials to everyone, Christians and non-Christians. And believers in Christ have been to called to an additional trial, that of a life that is radically different from the rest of the world. A life that may call for separation from loved ones, a life that may bring division within the family unit, because our view of matters are biblical rather than worldly. And we’ve been called to handle all these matters with love at the root. We are told to love those who hate us, we are to be kind to the unkind, to show compassion to those who bring animosity. And through it all, we are to ‘count it all joy’.

This is possible when we focus not on the outcome to life’s issues but rather on the Giver of life. What does the outcome matter, when we know that we are loved unconditionally by the Solver of the problem and He will ‘work it out for our good’? We are to keep our eyes fixed on the Lord, through prayer and in His Word, then while we go through life’s trials we can ‘count it all joy’. Trials can be great, but our God is greater. The outcome may not be what we desired, but it’s for our good. We keep our eyes on the Lord, He will keep an eye on our trials. Trust Him with the outcome.

Thank you for the time spent with me throughout the week when you read WHEN FEAR LEADS. Thank you. Anyway how was your week?
Jazz the cat

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23 responses to “SHALL WE COUNT IT?”
[…] SHALL WE COUNT IT? — Becoming HIS Tapestry […]
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Thank you 🙏🏽
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We count it al joy because we know this world is temporary and anything we suffer for his name will be rewarded in eternity.
I won’t comment about the cat because I am allergic 🙂
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😂😂Jazz is offended that you are allergic to her 😂
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lol
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What we focus on determines our response in any situation. May we lean upward and focus on Him, always. 😊🙌
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Amen 🙏🏽 that’s the way to success in this world
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Oh my, Miss Jazz is quite the beauty!
Great post-Love what you said here:
“What does the outcome matter, when we know that we are loved unconditionally by the Solver of the problem and He will ‘work it out for our good?”
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😂 I almost believe that Jazz knows she is a pretty one 😂😂 thank you, my friend. May our Lord be glorified
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❤️
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Love your kitty cats! Great post. I think Paul’s advice to ‘take every thought captive’ is essential to be able to ‘count it all joy’. It’s those worldly thoughts that can bring me misery in the trials. Blessings!
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Amen and amen 🙏🏽 love that verse and how very right you are 😳take every thought captive; that’s the key
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“in fact the answer to our problems may even temporarily break our hearts or even disappoint us.”
You are so spot on with this post, Brenda! Not that you usually aren’t.😉
Your words bring to mind an old hymn:
🎶Must Jesus bear the cross alone and all the world go free? No, there’s a cross for everyone. And there’s a cross for me.”🎶
PS. Jazz is a beautiful cat! She looks happy and so do you.
Blessings.
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I don’t know this song, but how very appropriate 🙂 May we bear that cross with dignity and strength
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Good point about not always liking our trials OR the outcome!
God has drawn my attention to this verse many times this past week: Psalms 16.6 “The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.”
Wherever we are, it is the place God wants us to be, for His glory and our blessing. It is pleasant, therefore; no quibbling with God about how things ought to be different. We can MAKE them different by arranging our focus on God and obeying Him.
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love that verse, I must admit God’s Word agrees with itself 🙂 love the quote, “bloom where you’re planted”
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I’ve heard that one, and it is a good one!
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Count it all joy but also count the cost as a Christian. There’s still the old false narrative floating around that the Christian life is always sunshine and roses when it’s far from it sometimes. While God does provide us with joy unspeakable, we are to live a life set apart from the rest of the world which can often be a lonely place to be. But thank God for His grace and mercy and other believers who enduring the same thing which makes our trials bearable and even some cases joyful.
P.S. The hair color and beret is AMAZING and Jazz is adorable. Have a blessed weekend Brenda 💗
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🙂 🙂 Thank you my friend. yes.. its sad and unfortunate when as christians we believe that this life deserves sunshine and roses, when we know that growth takes place when we go through trials
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Amen to that. No cross, no crown. It’s very unfortunate. I guess Christian forget that it rains on the just and the unjust, right?
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Amen we do need to remember that and the fact that we are NOT God
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You’re so right, Brenda. It’s all in what we choose to focus on.
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yep, that matters 🙂 when we focus on the outcome sometimes its easy to forget the Lord
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