Readers’ Reflections: A Guest Post from Cindy Weaver:

Something I’ve been wanting to do for a while is to include other readers’ reflections on the blog.  Since the reading plan is a 6-days a week plan, the last day of the week is the perfect time to do this.  A wonderful woman I know sent me one of her own reflections as a response to one of the posts this week, and she is thankfully allowing me to share it:

"Afflictions Eclipsed by Glory" - a response to the post on April 1st. 

Thank you so much Emily for the picture with words and your beautiful explanation!  Love reading your blog each day. 

It's kind of funny that you posted this on April 1st, and I heard our worship leaders at church sing this song the day before on Easter Sunday, and I had a new personal revelation about the very phrase "afflictions eclipsed by glory."

The song, I believe somewhere around the start, says something like, "He loves like a hurricane; I am a tree bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy."  When I heard this part I realized just how very much I am the tree!  Love being the tree!  Don't necessarily enjoy the hurricane that causes the bend...but love being a tree!  In the bending I see myself holding loose desperate hands while rhythmically swaying with the song in the midst of the hurricane.  

Then comes the part "afflictions eclipsed by glory."  I now love my afflictions, kinda weird huh?  If I am not my usual stubborn self and embrace the afflictions, I am given the opportunity to slow down long enough to reconnect to God's glory.  Our ultimate goal as Christians is to bring glory to God through our daily lives.  Bringing glory to God daily gives us back the gift of the greatest joy there is that nothing can take away.  We have glory within us as Christians through Christ that lives in and through us.  Sometimes we just forget and need an affliction to remind us.

Thanks again Cindy for sharing this!  If any other readers are ever interested in sharing, just send me your reflection to ejmushlock@gmail.com.