"Get it quite clear in your own mind that this state of falling in love is not, in itself, necessarily favourable either to us or to the other side. It is simply an occasion which we and the Enemy are both trying to exploit. Like most of the other things which humans are excited about, such as health and sickness, age and youth, or war and peace, it is, from the point of view of the spiritual life, mainly raw material." (CS Lewis - The Screwtape Letters)
When I read this quote years ago, it revolutionized my thinking. There is something very hopeful—but also sobering—about viewing the circumstances of my life as raw material. Every new thing that comes my way, whether it is a sizable inheritance or a terminal diagnosis, is an occasion for me to draw nearer to God or wander away from Him. Satan desires to use every situation for my harm, while God desires to use every event for my good and his glory. I have seen cases in which poverty or illness has made a person strong and wise. I have also seen lives full of money, health, and excess that are completely devoid of joy and purpose. Yet, some with earthly riches have not made mammon their god, and have used their wealth for God's glory. Likewise, many in poverty are not strengthened by it, but instead become bitter or profligate. [from The Consecrated Life, Betsy Childs]
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