I saw a quote the other day that got me thinking and perhaps you've heard it. It's by A.W. Tozer, who was an author and theologian, who has written some of the deepest, richest books on God that exist. This is what he says:

“It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until he has hurt him deeply." - A.W. Tozer

I first heard this about 10 years ago and it has really ministered to me through some of the more difficult seasons of my life. I started to suffer from severe clinical anxiety when I was 12 or 13 years old and it went undiagnosed until I was 30. It was that struggle that drove me to the Lord. In seventh grade, I started reading the New Testament and I just started reading it front to back over and over again. Then I went on a retreat when I was in 10th-grade and they gave me a whole Bible. That's when I started reading the whole Bible from front to back and I don't think I would have done that had God not given me this affliction of anxiety because the only place I seem to find comfort truly was in Scripture. So this quote continues on and says:

"God actually rises up storms of conflict in relationships at times in order to accomplish that deeper work in our character. We cannot love our enemies in our own strength. This is graduate-level grace." - A.W. Tozer

Graduate-level grace. That's what I want for me! Not only do I want that for myself, but I also want to be able to give it to others. So as we are in this season where it seems like everything is so divided and everyone is so angry; ask God to do that deeper work in you. God never divorces purpose from pain.