Beauty will rise

Someone recently posted this quote on facebook and I realized Josh and I read this book awhile back.  It was a neat reminder for a lot of the things we are going through right now:
"Beauty is often birthed in struggle. The desire for ease, comfort, and stress-free living is an indirect desire to remain an 'unseasoned,' immature Christian. God has given you opportunity for unparalleled spiritual growth. Face the struggle head-on." (Gary Thomas, Sacred Marriage)

WOW.  I keep re-reading it.  How humbling in light of our power outage (tropical storm Irene), our aching hearts as we live apart while Josh is deployed, my "stress" as I figure out how to be a mom and communicate with Josh daily, Josh's difficult work schedule and the daily discouragement he faces living in a dark place...

We are being S-T-R-E-T-C-H-E-D and none of it is easy, comfortable or stress-free.  However, I find myself on a daily basis attempting to have all of these things and I become quite frazzled when I cannot live a stress-free life. 

I want the unparalleled spiritual growth without the desert times or the heartache.  I know this isn't how it works.  What a sweet reminder. 

Stephen Curtis Chapman wrote a song after his daughter was accidentally hit by a car and killed: "Beauty Will Rise"....he sings, "Out of the ashes...Beauty will rise....but I know that my joy is coming"
(see link for video of his song : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6sGtkhpqeA)

Romans 5
¹ Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we^[a] have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ² through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we^[b] boast in the hope of the glory of God. ³ Not only so, but we^[c] also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴ perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵ And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
⁶ You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.