American author Washington Irving said: “It lightens the stroke to draw near to him who handles the rod.”
When we suffer because of our sin, we should draw near to God and anticipate that in mercy He will turn suffering into blessing. Our tendency at such times in life is to pull away from God and others. We attempt to hide, excuse, and minimize our iniquity. When God found Adam in the garden hiding in his sin it was not in the hiding that Adam found grace, but in the coming out and drawing near to an offended, but forgiving God.
Often when we are overwhelmed in ourselves we need most to be with God, AND with His people, even though it is sometimes the last place on earth we feel like going to.
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