August 28

God does not leave us helpless to acquire Christ-like attributes to our character. He desires that we become reflections of His loveliness and He promotes our refining toward that end. We do not always prefer the methods He uses to hone our Christ-likeness, however. Sometimes we actually resist His methods!

Why would we be reluctant to take on the loveliness of Heaven’s pure Lamb? Why would we cling to the base qualities of earth when we can be endued with the lofty attributes of the Lord of Creation? Are we so foolish as to prefer earth’s bonds to Heaven’s wings?

The explanation for our resistance is found in Romans 5:3,4 where it says, “…tribulation develops maturity of character and character allows the love of God to be demonstrated in us by the Holy Ghost.” Although we earnestly desire to be vessels of God’s demonstrated love, we do not wish to experience tribulation!

It is inherent within the natural man to avoid trouble, to resist scorn, to overcome failure, to flee pain. Each of us desires to be perceived as a victor and God’s plan for conforming our character to the Lord’s is often fraught with these things. He’s there to help us defeat them, but first we must confront them with faith!