Daily Devotionals by Ardith Keef

     How do you decide if something is a blessing?
     As Soldiers of the Cross, we must learn that the Lord is always stretching us. He 
is preparing us for heaven, and that means we need to change.    
     Just last week, I heard a Brother say God is "blessing" him because he is getting 
things he has always wanted and things are easier for him than they have ever been.
     I was horrified.
     We know His Word says He will bless us and not curse us.
     We know that we do not know what is best for us, and He does.
     We know He has said He would withhold no good thing from us.
     There is far too much talk today about the feel-good blessings, and not enough talk 
about the Cross.
     He who endured the Cross now sits on the Right Hand of the Father.  That makes 
it clear that the work of the Cross, which is so painful to the flesh, results in Glory.
     We do not need to understand.
     We do not need to see how things fit together.
     It is not tantamount that the flesh have relief.
     What we need is the raw Presence of the Lord, and that comes only through
obedience.
     The result is the best God has for us - blessing!