Wounds of the Soul

"A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice."  (Isaiah 42:3)

Recently I had to close the door on a childhood dream.  Circumstances, some the consequences of my own poor choices years ago, forced my hand to decline admission to the university of my dreams.  The guiding hand of fate seems to lead us toward our destiny.  Fate does so by maneuvering us to make decisions based on the limited number of options or realities in our subjective life.  Often these times in the refiner's fire deal wounds to the soul and a stinging rebuke to our heart, causing a paralysis of depression.  Living in the midst of such a time is heart-wrenching, but I must endure so I may come out of the other side a better man.  Growth and maturation manifest themselves in the fire of life.  Even gold and silver must be fired to white-hotness in order for the dross, the impurities, to rise to the surface for skimming.  Yes these times hurt like hell, but I must endure and press forward.  Thankfully I am reminded of the Shepard who will walk with me through the valley of the shadow of death.  (Psalm 23)  Also, the aforementioned verse from Isaiah is a valued assurance and comfort.  For those who are in the refiner's fire, I encourage and implore you to keep pressing forward.  Keep plugging away even if your heart and soul scream, "There's no way!" while your mind analytically states, "The light at the end of the tunnel is close."  I will never know how close my next blessing is if I quit too soon.
 

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