Karen Turley
Women's Ministries Director
Karen Turley graduated with a Masters in Business Administration from the Ken Blanchard College of Business at Grand Canyon University. She received her BS in Business Management from San Diego Christian College in El Cajon. Karen received the Lord at an early age and has been married to Ed for over 25 years. She and Ed have two children in college, Mike, majoring in Business, and Tiffany, majoring in Mathematics. She and Ed have been at Cornerstone since 1985. Both Mike and Tiffany have been through Cornerstone Christian School from Kindergarten through Eighth grade. Karen enjoys being herself and encouraging others to love the Lord with all of their hearts. Karen’s motto is to serve the Lord with her whole heart for her whole life.
Revelation 6: 9-11 (NIV) God’s Love in the Midst of Suffering
“And when the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of all who had been martyred for the word of God and for being faithful in their witness. They called loudly to the Lord and said, ‘O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long will it be before you judge the people who belong to this world for what they have done to us? When will you avenge our blood against these people?’ Then a white robe was given to each of them. And they were told to rest a little longer until the full number of their brothers and sisters – their fellow servants of Jesus – had been martyred.”
Here we read about the martyrs asking the Lord for justice and that their innocent blood is avenged. They had been martyred for the word of God and for being faithful in their witness. Does the Lord's response hit you like it does me? He tells them that they need to wait because there are more that will be martyred. So often our focus in this life is to be free of pain, suffering, and injustice. Although the Lord certainly has the power to intervene and have the deaths of these future martyrs avoided, He chooses to intervene after they are killed. As Americans, I don't think we ever think about the privilege of suffering for Christ. I don't think that we often contemplate the intense love that Christ has for us that motivated Him to endure such horrific suffering on our behalf. I pray for relief of pain and avoidance of suffering for myself and for those I know. Sometimes when God doesn't provide the relief of pain or relief of suffering we misinterpret His love for us. Sometimes we think that if He really loved us, He would take away all of our pain or that He would intervene in every situation that He can. These are false assumptions. We cannot possibly grasp even a portion of the depth of His love for us.
When He doesn't bring relief of pain in your life, can you choose to believe that He loves you deeply? Can you choose to be thankful for the privilege of having a tiny glimpse of what He went through for you? Can you choose to be thankful for the suffering that makes you dependent on Him moment by moment?
I confess I don't know how it all works together in His master plan but I do know that this life is but a breath compared to eternity. If we leave this life prematurely because of our commitment to Christ, there will be no greater privilege to experience throughout eternity. Will you choose today to believe with all your heart that He loves you regardless of your circumstances and choose to live for Him no matter what the cost?
God bless,
Karen
Karen’s Korner
Karen Turley
Women's Ministries Director
Karen Turley graduated with a Masters in Business Administration from the Ken Blanchard College of Business at Grand Canyon University. She received her BS in Business Management from San Diego Christian College in El Cajon. Karen received the Lord at an early age and has been married to Ed for over 25 years. She and Ed have two children in college, Mike, majoring in Business, and Tiffany, majoring in Mathematics. She and Ed have been at Cornerstone since 1985. Both Mike and Tiffany have been through Cornerstone Christian School from Kindergarten through Eighth grade. Karen enjoys being herself and encouraging others to love the Lord with all of their hearts. Karen’s motto is to serve the Lord with her whole heart for her whole life.
Revelation 6: 9-11 (NIV) God’s Love in the Midst of Suffering
“And when the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of all who had been martyred for the word of God and for being faithful in their witness. They called loudly to the Lord and said, ‘O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long will it be before you judge the people who belong to this world for what they have done to us? When will you avenge our blood against these people?’ Then a white robe was given to each of them. And they were told to rest a little longer until the full number of their brothers and sisters – their fellow servants of Jesus – had been martyred.”
Here we read about the martyrs asking the Lord for justice and that their innocent blood is avenged. They had been martyred for the word of God and for being faithful in their witness. Does the Lord's response hit you like it does me? He tells them that they need to wait because there are more that will be martyred. So often our focus in this life is to be free of pain, suffering, and injustice. Although the Lord certainly has the power to intervene and have the deaths of these future martyrs avoided, He chooses to intervene after they are killed. As Americans, I don't think we ever think about the privilege of suffering for Christ. I don't think that we often contemplate the intense love that Christ has for us that motivated Him to endure such horrific suffering on our behalf. I pray for relief of pain and avoidance of suffering for myself and for those I know. Sometimes when God doesn't provide the relief of pain or relief of suffering we misinterpret His love for us. Sometimes we think that if He really loved us, He would take away all of our pain or that He would intervene in every situation that He can. These are false assumptions. We cannot possibly grasp even a portion of the depth of His love for us.
When He doesn't bring relief of pain in your life, can you choose to believe that He loves you deeply? Can you choose to be thankful for the privilege of having a tiny glimpse of what He went through for you? Can you choose to be thankful for the suffering that makes you dependent on Him moment by moment?
I confess I don't know how it all works together in His master plan but I do know that this life is but a breath compared to eternity. If we leave this life prematurely because of our commitment to Christ, there will be no greater privilege to experience throughout eternity. Will you choose today to believe with all your heart that He loves you regardless of your circumstances and choose to live for Him no matter what the cost?
God bless,
Karen
Karen’s Korner