God turns everything into a mirror for our learning

Picture of a painting hung at Lo Quay River Cafe,

Perth, Western Australia

WEAKNESS is intrinsic to the makeup of every human being. God allows us to have our weaknesses so that we would learn from them. We have weaknesses, and so, for what other purpose?

Here is one sure application: everything we experience is a mirror to us for our learning.

The key illustration is family. Most of us, if not all of us, have something or someone within our family we would change if we could.

When we fall into the abyss of conflict with that family member we’re always disagreeing with, God holds a mirror up to us, so that as we see their response, God is showing us where we can improve. God always gives us the capacity to respond well with others, even disrespectful others. And, when we’re honest, we can see how and when we have the capacity to respond disrespectfully. God shows us this much in our family situations.

Like my mother always used to tell us boys — she would say, I’m not interested in what other people’s kids are doing; my concern is you — as far as we’re personally concerned, God is not interested in what other people are getting away with. As far as we are personally concerned, God is interested in what we are learning — not in what others should learn because we say they could or should.

By the things that occur to us, and by the way we handle those things, God holds up to us a mirror.

God never forces us to learn, but His desire is that we would learn.

Family is our gift. God uses our family to reflect to us the problem we have; the problem we cannot get away from. They are not the problem if we are genuine disciples. Our faith lives are between us and our God.

Family members are the instrument God uses to highlight the character weaknesses He wishes to emend in us. Our Lord gives us the opportunity to be honest.