Psalm 38

"Lord, all that I long for is known to you,
my sighing is no secret from you;
my heart is throbbing, my strength deserting me,
the light of my eyes itself has left me."
Psalm 38: 9-10

When God strips away the fluff of life we are left with a choice: to either try to put a happy face on everything and ignore the pain or to face the realities of life and look for God in the midst of even pain.
One of the best things about my sabbatical time this past summer was the work that God did in stripping away the layers of life that allowed me to see why I do some of the things I do. The time helped me to identify some real needs that I should not ignore as well as some of the ways I have attempted to meet needs that I thought I had in my life. In the end as God showed me a more complete picture of my heart I found that my true desire was for God! Even as other things continue to be stripped away I find myself leaning more and more upon God's holy grace and I wouldn't have it any other way.