“If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.”1 Peter 2:3.
(OHC 325.1)
Have you tasted that the Lord is gracious? Does your spiritual appetite crave communion with the Lord? You may discover that He is gracious, not by having all you desire, but by passing through the school of affliction. Since I was nine years old I have been learning in the school of affliction. In my early childhood I could find nothing desirable but the precious words of Jesus. Since I tasted the Word of God in all its sweetness, I have never lost the desire for more.
(OHC 325.2)
After I went to Australia I was afflicted with rheumatism and malaria. For eleven months I did not have the free use of my arms. After the first week of wonder as to what it all meant, I concluded it would be best to stop wondering, and to leave myself in the hands of the Lord. I tasted His goodness and found that He is gracious. Only a little while during the night could I forget the pain enough to sleep. Yet I tasted the Lord′s goodness. The sense of His presence shut me in from the world, so that it seemed as if I could speak to Him face to face, as did Moses. Throughout all the pain and suffering, I felt that I had with me a heavenly Companion....
(OHC 325.3)
Christ says, I am at thy right hand to help thee. What more could we in our weakness desire? Shall we go to one another with all our troubles, telling human beings the temptations we have and how weak we are? The Saviour is standing at our right hand, offering to lift us up, that we may “sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”Ephesians 2:6. But so often we turn away from Him and His promises, and tell our troubles to those who, like ourselves, are but mortal, with troubles which only Christ can bear.... Let us no longer dishonor God by turning from Him to human inefficiency....
(OHC 325.4)
Take your troubles to the Master. Say, “Here I am, Lord. Thou knowest all about me, and Thou canst help me. I will follow in Thy footsteps and do Thy will.” When you commit yourself to God, you may be sure that in all times of affliction you will have the very help that you need.
(OHC 325.5)