“God allows and at times causes us to go through the kinds of circumstances that strip away all falsehood and leave us with our real selves

A thought by Erwin Raphael McManus (2003-09-04) from his book, Uprising: A Revolution of the Soul (Kindle Location 2979). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

Who are you? Really, who are you? If all you’ve gone through are the blessings of life then you may not really know the answer to who you really are. Who you really are comes through in the struggles of life.

Oh it is great to share about your faith through the good times of life. You may say that all the good stuff is because of your faith but you may have a different story when life isn’t so good.

Margaret and I have had the privilege to sit under the ministry of both Erwin McManus and Rick Warren. They have been two men who have had a great impact on my view of life. They are both men whose faith has been tested through great struggles.

Margaret and I sat Tuesday night and listened to Rick and Kay tell Piers Morgan on his CNN program of their immense struggles after their son’s suicide this past summer. We went to Saddleback their church the next week they were back from taking time off to deal with this horrible situation. I just wanted to be there along with 30,000 other people to show my support to this very special family. They have shown their real selves through this circumstance that could strip away all falsehood.

God is real even in the difficult situations of life. He saw His own Son go through such torment and He saw Him come out as a tremendous example of how we are to live by faith. He showed us His authenticity.

Erwin also says, “There are few things as exhilarating as going through the fire and finding that you had the resilience to make it through. All of us wonder at times whether we have what it takes. God wants to bring us to a place where we have no doubt of the work He has done within us.”

So who are we, really?

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