Lord, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death..

So, i've been going through some pretty tough times lately, which have really been discouraging and painful for me, and I must confess, sometimes I've wondered 'God, where are you?? can't you see me hurting?? can't you see me crying?? what are you waiting for?? help me!!'... but really, He has been with me all the time. He's been holding me in His loving arms, whispering 'I'm here, my beloved. I'm here, and I love you.' Sometimes it seems He's no where near, but really, He's close. He's so close! Sometimes we go through hard times in order to grow more and to become stronger in our faith. I know through most of this, my faith has been stretched and tested, and yeah, it's been hard. Sometimes I've been ready to quite and give up, throw in the towel and say 'I'm done!' But once again I've been reminded about the parable of the Gardener and the vines. The vines that bear no fruit are cut off and thrown into the fire, which is where I definitely don't want to be, but the ones that bear fruit are pruned. Pruned. For those of you who know what pruning is, it's not a gentle painless job for the plant. If plants were alive, they'd be in SO much pain during it. So when we pray for God to prune us, don't expect it to be all daisies and butterflies. It's gonna hurt. But just remember that God loves you and wants the best for you, and if you're being pruned, that great! It means that you're bearing fruit and God is just pruning you to be more fruitful! So hang in there! I've made it so far. so can you :)