POWERNOTE: EDNA ELS

Hi my friend,

Can I be honest with you?

Yesterday was just a hard day for me. Have you also experienced some pressure and frustration lately?

Yes, I know we pray, “let it be on earth as it is in heaven”, and that there is “no frustration in heaven”, but sometimes the dissonance between what we’re facing and what we believe for becomes a gap that stretches us far beyond what we think we can overcome. It’s in these times that I’m so grateful to God that He just never gives up on us.

The fact that He doesn’t throw His hands up in the air in utter exasperation because we don’t ‘quite’ turn out the way He envisioned attests to His patient loving-kindness and not to our compliance to the process.

He is constantly forming, shaping and moulding us, using every (adverse and advantageous) situation and person to shape us to look more like Him.

He knows the Masterplan for our future, He holds the blueprint, and He has the final say!

And, as if that’s not sufficient, He loves us enough to remind us of who we are and how we’re supposed to behave (just in case we’ve forgotten or become so overwhelmed by contrary circumstances) by bringing friends around us to confirm His word and personify His love and kindness to us.

True Friends don’t always say what we want to hear or even how we’d like to hear it. But they speak up for us, and they speak Truth to us.

That Truth cuts through our self-pity, selfrighteousnessand excuses like a hot knife throughbutter, allowing us to humble ourselves and toadjust our attitude whilst fully embracing our humanfallibility without feeling condemned and useless.

Yes, my friend,

God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truthand tell it in love— like Christ in everything. We takeour lead from Christ, who is the source of everythingwe do. He keeps us in step with each other. His verybreath and blood flow through us, nourishing us sothat we will grow up healthy in God, robust in love.

Ephesians 4:15-16 [The Message]

So today, let’s celebrate the privilege of Hisfriendship and the friends that He has graciouslygiven us to ensure that we grow up and mature.

Thank you to every friend that has lovedunconditionally and without reserve, that hastaken the risk to speak the Truth at the cost ofbeing unpopular and misunderstood. That hasencouraged and at times rebuked, that haslaughed till we cried, and cried with us when wehad no tears left. That has personified Jesus andinspired us to do the same: To be the kind of friendwe’d like to have.

Your grateful friend,

Edna