Lisa Barry: Have you ever been tempted to think that the good things that happen in life come about because you've been a good Christian? And on the flip side, have you ever thought that the trial you're facing was God slapping your hand because of some wrong? Although it's true that bad conduct will reap consequences, beyond that it's very dangerous to interpret God's favor or displeasure based on our circumstances.

Today on Gateway To Joy, Elisabeth Elliot is going to read a letter from a woman who felt like her marriage was a trial. She was convinced God was nowhere to be found. Maybe you're feeling much the same way today. Well, take heart. Elisabeth has some good news for you on this Wednesday edition of Gateway To Joy. Here's Elisabeth.

Elisabeth Elliot: "You are loved with an everlasting love." That's what the Bible says. "And underneath are the everlasting arms." This is your friend Elisabeth Elliot, continuing my talks today on the trivial round. Those three words come from an old hymn written by John Kieball back in 1822. I'll read you two of the stanzas.

"If on our daily course our mind be set to hallow all we find, new treasures still of countless price God will provide for sacrifice. The trivial round, the common task, will furnish all we ought to ask; room to deny ourselves, a road to bring us daily nearer God."

Do you know why I named my program Gateway To Joy? It's because I believe with all my heart, ladies and gentlemen and children, that absolutely everything, if offered to Jesus-every experience, every aspect of our lives-if offered to Jesus, can be a gateway to joy. Some of the most joyful people I've ever known have been people who did very, very humble, unnoticed kind of work. They did it as an offering to Jesus Christ.

I had a letter from a woman whose husband is not interested in spiritual things. She said, "We're on very different wavelengths. We have varying degrees of difficulty; inevitable, if both of us are not in accord with what God is saying. One of us is earnestly seeking to do His will; the other, not particularly interested. Sometimes he is even violently opposed. We find ourselves pushing and hauling, discontented. Sometimes I really want out," she said. "I've had it. I can't take anymore. I have actually prayed, 'Lord, please get me out of this or make it easier.'"

Well, I think the next letter that I'm going to read may help that woman. I hope she is listening. I think this is a terrific testimony. How thankful I am for the riches that the Lord gives me to pass on to you through the radio mail. Once again, I urge you to write to us. Remember that your letter will be answered, probably not by Elisabeth Elliot.

I have to tell you, it would be absolutely impossible for me to keep up with all the letter writing. But I do want you to know that I read those letters. After they have been read and answered by the staff in Lincoln, Nebraska, they are sent to me in Magnolia, Massachusetts. I read every single one of them, and of course I pray over them as well. So I do thank God for the riches that come to me in these letters in which I often pass on to you.

A lady had written to say that she had been asking God for some direction in her life, and would He "just please save my husband, because that would make things so much easier. Finally, last night I took a deep breath. Through the tears, I said, 'Lord, why are You so far away? I don't have anything left to say to You anymore.' He said finally, 'Good. I've been waiting for you to shut up.'

This is where you, Elisabeth, come in. I had purchased several weeks ago your calendar entitled KEEP A QUIET HEART. Through that little calendar, and through your daily radio messages, God finally got through to me. First of all, He said, 'I am the Lord of your circumstances. I am the Lord of your circumstances.'" She put that all in italics.

"'Don't go asking Me to give you something else to do with your life-something new, something grand, until you show Me your faithfulness in the job I have given you to do now at this moment. Serve your unbelieving husband. Learn to love him more, even though (and especially because) he doesn't love Me. As you serve the least of My brothers, you have served Me. It doesn't get any more 'least' than those who don't believe.

I'm not promising that I will save your husband. I may, but I may not. Learn to live with that. I gave him to you for a reason. I planted you where you are for a reason. I gave you that husband, put you in that family, that community, in this moment in history, for a reason. I am the Lord of your circumstances.

Learn to iron your shirts the way he likes them. Learn to cook, even though he says he enjoys cooking. Carry in the wood. Walk the dog. If he cleans the house while you are in church on Sunday morning, (and to this your family tells you that you should be ashamed of yourself), then you clean the house on Saturday afternoon.

It doesn't sound like much, but when offered up to Me with praise, it becomes holy. Serve your husband. Serve Me. Serve him. Serve Me. Learn obedience. Lay down your life for him, for the lost, as I laid down My life for you.

Secondly,"-and remember this is God speaking to this correspondent-"Secondly, trust Me. Personalize the promises in the Bible. 'You are loved with an everlasting love, and you are held with everlasting arms.' 'He that has begun a good work in you will see it through to the end.' Trust Me. 'My word is a lamp to guide your feet and a light on your path.'

Take a step, and I promise that I will give you light enough to take the next step. Push your boundaries a little with each step, but you must take a step of faith. You must take each step in faith. You cannot see through the darkness to all of the good things I have planned for you, but I know and this is trust. This is faith. I am the Lord of your circumstances.

Lastly, you cannot give Me anymore than you have. You cannot give me $100 if your husband will only give you $1. You can only give back to Me what I have given you to give back to Me. If and when I want your money, your gifts, your husband, then I will make it possible for you to offer it back to Me. I am the Lord of your circumstances.

Love your enemies. Love My enemies, even if those enemies are in your own house. What little act of faith you may see as insignificant, or even as a failure, I will use it to My glory, to My victory. You may never know how I will use the little things you do for Me. You do not need to know. You can only give Me what I allow you to give to Me, and you must leave the rest up to Me. If I am your Lord, then entrust it all to Me. I am the Lord of the big things in your life and the small things. What concerns you, concerns Me. I am the Lord of your circumstances."

That's the end of what God said to this lady. She says, "Thank you, Elisabeth. You are a true gateway to joy. Please know there are so many of us, especially women, whom you touch with your voice. If my faith, my walk with the Lord, is even only a grain of sand next to yours, then my prayers will have been answered. I thank God for allowing you to come into my life."

Well, I thank you, Robin, for that beautiful letter. I was swept away with that letter. I thought, "This is the most perfect illustration of what I'm constantly trying to get across." God is faithful. He is the Lord of our circumstances. He knows exactly what's good for you. He knows what the givens and the not givens are in your life.

As you have so beautifully recorded here, Robin, He makes it very clear that as you serve the least of His brothers, even if that happens to be your husband who is not a Christian, it doesn't get any more "least" than those who don't believe. It's very important here to note that God also says, "I'm not promising that I will save your husband. I may, but I may not. Learn to live with that. I gave him to you for a reason. I planted you where you are for a reason. I gave you that husband, put you in that family, that community, in this moment of history, for a reason."

Are you thinking today that God perhaps has overlooked your situation, that it has become intolerable and you can't take it any longer? Remember God's Word: "My grace is all you need, for power comes to its full strength in weakness."

This morning as I was reading my Bible, I was very convicted about my own weakness and my unwillingness to accept that weakness because I want to be strong. Then the Lord simply and quietly reminded me, "It's what I have given you to offer up to Me," even my weakness.

"The trivial round, the common task, will furnish all we ought to ask; room to deny ourselves, a road to bring us daily nearer God."

Lisa Barry: Weaknesses are so humiliating, aren't they? I don't like to give anyone a legitimate reason to take a pot shot at me. But they do force me to trust God instead of my own strength.

A few of the resources that were mentioned in today's letter I will offer again for you today. They are A HEART FOR GOD flip calendar, which is full of great little quotes for each day of any year. The second thing was the book Elisabeth has written called KEEP A QUIET HEART. That's a collection of thoughtful writings that have appeared in her monthly newsletter. They cover a variety of topics and come in short, bite-sized portions.

For information on how to purchase either of those offers, you can give us a call on our toll-free number. Here it is: 1-800-759-4JOY. That's 1-800-759-4569. Or you can write to us at Gateway To Joy, Box 82500, Lincoln, Nebraska, 68501. Gateway To Joy has been a production of Back to the Bible.

Well, have you ever wondered if you can live in the presence of God on a moment-by-moment basis? We'll learn about someone who said it is possible. That's next time on Gateway To Joy.