Pain?

It seems that I am hearing a lot about people who are struggling through difficult times. When I read the following quote, I thought it was worth sharing.

"If God has singled you out to be a special object of His grace, you may expect Him to honor you with stricter discipline and great3er suffering than less favored ones are called to endure. If God sets out to make you and unusual Christian, He is not likely to be as gentle as he is usually pictured by popular teachers. A sculptress does not use a manicure set to reduce the rude unshapely marble to a thing of beauty. he uses the saw, the hammer and the chisel. They are cruel tools, but without them, the rough stone must remain forever formless and unbeautiful. To do this supreme work of grace within you, he will take from you, and take from your heart everything you love the most. Everything you trust in will go from you. Piles of ashes will lie where your most precious treasures used to be. And in this you will learn what faith is and you will find out the hard way.... You will learn too, that present spiritual joys may come and go as they will, without altering your spiritual status or in any way effecting your position as a true child of the Heavenly Father. And, then you will also learn probably to your astonishment, that it is possible to live in all good conscience before God and men and still feel nothing of the peace and joy you hear talked about so much by immature Christians.' (A.W. Tozer)