“I have given away for their sake that they may know that You are good and infinitely merciful, I shall be faithful to You, come rain or shine” Divine Mercy in my soul # 893
“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil, for You are with me” Psalm 23:4
The Lord has always been faithful to me, so how could I not return that faith? I believe it is easier to lean on the Lord in dark days. In those times fear and stress can drive us to Him. Sustained darkness and fatigue can present a challenge in this for sure. In the long-stressed period of my daughter’s initial illness, I leaned more heavily upon God than ever in my life. But, as that period stretched on, I began to struggle.
In great peak times, it is quite easy for the soul to thank and praise God for the ‘sunrise’. The moments when the beauty is fresh upon the eyes and resting in the mind. But, the soul that isn’t praising Him all the time can easily lose focus and start to forget from Whom the blessings come, or even forget the sunrise as the day progresses.
In the mundane day to normal day is when the soul may struggle most to keep hold of the Lord. If the routine isn’t there to praise God in all things and to lean on Him consistently, it can become very easy for the soul to put God on the back burner and then forget about Him all together.
I believe the mundane is the hardest time for the soul to praise God always, especially as the soul becomes used to the moment. A soul can get used to times of suffering and pain, becoming comfortable with that feeling. Its senses dulling so much in the darkness that it can stop relying upon God as it had so depended when the period started. In riches, the soul can start with praise to God for the great blessings but again, be lulled to a false sense of security in the moment, forgetting Who is responsible for the gifts and treasures, slowly falling away from praise and thanksgiving until it doesn’t look to God.
The soul must always be vigilant in all moments, ‘rain or shine’ or just in the ordinary. The soul must be trained to lean on God, trust God and praise God in all kinds of weather. Leaning on God in the regular day, turning to Him in prayer (even when the soul doesn’t feel it needs to pray) and praising God every day for every moment, is what will bring the soul to a higher level and intimacy with God. This soul will then be prepared when, not if, the storm strikes. This soul will remember and look for the sunrise even in the darkest night.
My soul was strengthen and made aware of this through the crucible. I had to walk through a Dark Night of the Senses to realize how unprepared I was for the good and bad times. Through my crucible, God showed me what I was missing in my every day life…a relationship with Him. Not one that fit in specific times, but one that was more important in all times than anything else. Realizing that has helped me to learn to trust in God and developed a sense of peace resting in Him that I know even in the dark valley in the midst of the storm, He walks with me as my Defender. This trust is built now, just in the mundane day.