Beloved, “it is well.” It is good to be afflicted. Our days of suffering here we call days of darkness; hereafter they will seem our brightest and fairest. In eternity we shall praise Jehovah most of all for our sorrows and tears. So blessed shall they then seem to us that we shall wonder how we could ever weep and sigh. We shall then know how utterly unworthy we were of all this grace. We did not deserve anything, but least of all to be afflicted. Our joys were all of grace—pure grace—much more our sorrows. It is out of the “exceeding riches of the grace of God” that trials come. -- Octavius Winslow

Do not think your lot is desolate, and lonely, and friendless. Do not think that all have forsaken you, and that in sadness and in solitude you are threading your way through an intricate desert. There is One that loves you, that thinks of you, that has His eye upon you, and is at this moment guiding, upholding, and caring for you: that one is Jesus! Oh that you could but look into His heart, and see how He loves you; oh that you could but hear Him say, so gently, so earnestly, "Abide in my love!" Cheer up; you are in Christ's heart, and Christ is in your heart. You are not alone: ~ Winslow