0912 经历灵性困惑
耶稣回答说：「你们不知道所求的是什么。」 《马太福音 20:22》
在你的灵命中，有时会有困惑，而走出困惑的方法并不是简单地说你不应该困惑。那不是对错的问题，而是神正带领你走一条你暂时还不理解的道路。只有通过经历这种灵性上的困惑，你才会明白神对你的心意。
祂的友谊被遮蔽（见路加福音11:5-8）。耶稣在这里给了一个比喻，说明一个人看似漠不关心他的朋友；实际上祂是在说，这就是有时天父对你看起来是什么样子。你会认为祂是一个不恩慈的朋友，但请记住——祂不是。有一天，最终一切都会得到解释。心灵里的友情似乎蒙上了一层乌云，甚至爱本身也必须在痛苦和眼泪中等待更完整契合的祝福。当神看似完全被遮蔽时，你还会坚持对祂的信心吗？
祂父性的阴影（见路加福音 11:11-13）。耶稣说，有时候，你的天父看似一个不自然的父亲——好像祂是冷酷无情——但请记住，祂不是。「…凡祈求的，就得着。」（路加福音11:10）。如果你现在只看到天父脸上的阴影，请坚持这个事实：祂最终会让你清楚明白一切，并完全证明祂允许进入你生命中一切事物的正当性。
祂信实之陌生（见路加福音 18:1-8）。「人子来的时候，遇得见世上有信德吗？」（路加福音 18:8）。祂会找到尽管困惑却仍信靠祂的信心吗？要在信心中站稳，相信耶稣所说的是真的，尽管当下你并不明白神在做什么，但祂有比你现在向祂祈求的更重要的议题。
来自章伯斯的智慧
祂将要擅自使用你的生命呢？还是你醉心于你对自己未来的构想？神对我们的生命负责，一个伟大的主旨就是不计后果地信赖祂。《蒙神悦纳》
0912 Going Through Spiritual Confusion
Jesus answered and said, “You do not know what you ask.” —Matthew 20:22
There are times in your spiritual life when there is confusion, and the way out of it is not simply to say that you should not be confused. It is not a matter of right and wrong, but a matter of God taking you through a way that you temporarily do not understand. And it is only by going through the spiritual confusion that you will come to the understanding of what God wants for you.
The Shrouding of His Friendship (see Luke 11:5-8). Jesus gave the illustration here of a man who appears not to care for his friend. He was saying, in effect, that is how the heavenly Father will appear to you at times. You will think that He is an unkind friend, but remember— He is not. The time will come when everything will be explained. There seems to be a cloud on the friendship of the heart, and often even love itself has to wait in pain and tears for the blessing of fuller fellowship and oneness. When God appears to be completely shrouded, will you hang on with confidence in Him?
The Shadow on His Fatherhood (see Luke 11:11-13). Jesus said that there are times when your Father will appear as if He were an unnatural father— as if He were callous and indifferent— but remember, He is not. “Everyone who asks receives…” (Luke 11:10). If all you see is a shadow on the face of the Father right now, hang on to the fact that He will ultimately give you clear understanding and will fully justify Himself in everything that He has allowed into your life.
The Strangeness of His Faithfulness (see Luke 18:1-8). “When the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8). Will He find the kind of faith that counts on Him in spite of the confusion? Stand firm in faith, believing that what Jesus said is true, although in the meantime you do not understand what God is doing. He has bigger issues at stake than the particular things you are asking of Him right now.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Is He going to help Himself to your life, or are you taken up with your conception of what you are going to do? God is responsible for our lives, and the one great keynote is reckless reliance upon Him. —Approved Unto God, 10 R