"By sheer grace, God will not permit us to live even for a brief period in a dream world. He does not abandon us to those rapturous experiences and lofty moods that come over us like a dream. God is not a God of the emotions but the God of truth. Only that fellowship which faces such disillusionment, with all its unhappy and ugly aspects, begins to be what it should be in God's sight, begins to grasp in faith the promise that is given to it."
--Deitrich Bonhoeffer
I've had a couple of discussions about this quote in the last couple of days. My take on it is that we do not live in a fantasy world with no problems ever, rather our lives take place in reality. And reality is messy. God, Jesus, the Bible, etc. never promised us a cake walk life when we decided to follow Jesus. But He does promise to be with us during the storms of life right by our side every step of the way. Bonhoeffer seems to be pointing out that faith in God's promises is a much different life than simply a Santa Clause God that just takes all the troubles and worries out of this life. This isn't heaven we're living on; it's called earth. When we have fellowship with our loving God, we can more hopefully weather the storms of this life on earth with a great hope of being with Him in heaven one day.
If you find yourself in one of life's storms, instead of getting mad at God, try clinging to Him. You'll be happier with the results. I promise. :)
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