Wrestling in the muck.

The closer you come to Christ, the sharper the contrast becomes between the things of God and the things of this world and our sinful nature. As you see your Lord more and more in all things-- the rising sun, your conversations and daily interactions, intimacies between friends and family, you will be forced to face your biases, your pride, and your ideas of how things "ought" to be. And most likely, the people affected by these biases most, will be your loved one--your husband, your children, brothers and sisters. So then, you must rise again to His graces and acknowledge the double-edge sword of spiritual intimacy with Christ. Because the deeper you go with Christ, the more sin in yourself is revealed, the more grace you must accept for yourself, the more you must give to others.

But if you miss it--if you remain totally aware of the sinful nature of your loved ones and community, you will keep yourself in a state of gracelessness and that double-edge sword will wound the ones you love the most. So press on. It is not an easy thing to do, but press on nonetheless. Blessing follows closely at the heals of those who are willing to wrestle through such things.

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