BD.0373
April 11, 1938

THE PURPOSE OF SUFFERING, TRIALS - A SLOTHFUL SPIRIT

So many happenings in life make one discouraged. It is like a bond, which binds, the heart. Again and again doubts in the goodness and mercy of God will arise when so much grief and suffering occur. But still it gives you an inner maturity, which would otherwise take a much longer time to accomplish. And because your earthly life last only a short time it is necessary that such painful and depressing occurrences must take place frequently, often one after another so that you may derive blessing from them and that you look upon your life carefully and earnestly, and that you turn more and more from the world and its attractions which are a danger to you. For some life seems often unbearable and sometimes such an earthly child is so discouraged that he loses heart and gives up without making even an effort to change his disheartened condition. Yet it would be so easy when you have the right attitude toward God to be shown which way you have to go. But consider the many seemingly insurmountable obstacles in your life. Could you ever escape from then if you did not have help from above?

But you do not always recognize this help as sent from above, yet every occurrence is a flow of the Grace of God whether good or bad it always has the same purpose; to have an ennobling effect on you, MY Earthly children. If you can see in every test a means of improvement then you will also recognize your own shortcomings and failures, and with this recognition comes the will to overcome them. Then each test will have fulfilled its purpose---and then in all difficult circumstances you realize that they are necessary to achieve a higher level of maturity and that they are steps in the ladder, which lead the soul to perfection. A life without a struggle would truly mean to stay in the same track, and the battle within against oneself is far more difficult than the battle against the enemy which comes from without. Every awakening from a slothful spirit is a step forward. The awakened man will remember his spirit and not let it starve, for lethargy brings you down and in such a state you cannot be considered "alive". It will defeat every urge to be active and can never have a beneficial influence on the soul. Therefore do not be alarmed when life's difficulties seem hard to bear---for through these you have discovered your shortcomings and fought against them and then in not too long a time they will disappear, for the Lord only allows such testing until their purposes have been reached and have done their work of making better the hearts of men. It is not HIS will that you suffer except that through this you are made worthy of everlasting joy.

AMEN