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         (Dad:) Now is the time when you've just gotta hang on! You've just gotta trust! You've just gotta believe! You've just gotta have faith! You've gotta trust that God knows what He's doing, even though there doesn't seem to be any logical reason why you should have to be going through the battles you're going through!
         The Lord is using these things in your life right now to make you into the woman that He wants you to be. Even though you can't see it, the Lord is using these things to work in your heart and in your life, and further down the road you'll see it and you'll understand.
         You'll finally realize why you had to go through this time and why it seemed like it took forever. You'll finally see the Lord's great wisdom. You'll see the plan of the Master Weaver. He's working on weaving you right now, putting together the strands of your life. But you usually can't tell what it's turning out to be until it's done! When the tapestry is complete, then you see and appreciate and value the beauty of it.
         You're in the middle of it, and I know it's tough. I know it's hard. I know it's a fight. I know it's discouraging. I know you sometimes just feel like, "Why bother?! Why do I have to go through this, anyway? This doesn't seem fair. It doesn't seem like the Lord loves me that much if I have to endure this new trial on top of everything else I've gone through!" It just seems like one thing after the other is piling on top of you, and you're worried that one more straw is going to come and it's going to break your back. Well, Honey, the Lord is not going to let that happen to you, because, believe me, He loves you!
         It's not going to go on forever. I know you're in the tunnel right now, and it looks like it's going to be dark for a lot longer, but if you just keep going, keep trusting, keep holding on, keep believing, keep persevering, you'll come out of it! And once you do, you'll be so happy you made it through.
         Now you're in the shop, in the Master Jeweler's hands, and He's cutting and chiseling and polishing--rubbing you this way and that--and bringing out the best in you. It's not always so comfortable, and sometimes you have to be subjected to a little pressure, a little polishing, a little chipping off of this or that, a little grinding here and there. But the end result is well worth it!
         So hang on! The victory is just around the corner! You've already got it--by faith! Don't give up and don't give in! Don't think of quitting now. Just hang in there and you'll make it!



Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family