Introduction and Assessment

 Introduction and Assessment
 This article poses lots of questions and it challenges my thinking. What are my priorities in life, relationships, and ministry? Am I walking in light of an eternal perspective or am I allowing the cares of the world to cloud my vision? Am I willing to face difficult situations and people honestly or am I avoiding dealing with reality? It helps to look back over my life and see how the Lord has changed me and brought me into deeper intimacy with him. Am I sensitive to the needs of others or am I too wrapped up in my own concerns? These are just some of the questions that came to mind as I was reading this introductory article. I am thankful for God's grace and mercy in my life. I am also thankful that he loves me just the way I am, but corrects me when I get off course. Life lately has been a mixture of great joy and deep discouragement. I have wrestled with the Lord and questioned his timing. I have seen him answer my prayers far beyond what I even could have imagined or thought possible! I am grateful for the hard times because it humbles me and causes me to become more dependent on the God who sees, hears, and knows me! He is the Great I Am and he is working out his purposes in my life.