Tag Archives: trials

All is well

Leave a reply

 

 

Trials of all kinds threaten to knock us off-balance and sometimes off our chosen path. Everything is going well one moment and then suddenly our foundations are shaken. At those times we need to be reminded of truths that will guide us well. If we’ve trained our heart to readily respond to God’s Word, we’re less likely to be thrown off guard. Maybe keeping signs like this around would remind us to step back and view the big picture. Our sovereign God is in control. Keep calm. All is well even though the earth is shaking.

 

Saying, “All is well” doesn’t make it well. But believing it gives you courage and strength to endure the battle you are currently facing.  As the song by Sovereign Grace brightly shares, “All is Well” is the call that proclaims:

  • The sun beams on beyond the clouds.
  • In the dark grace still abounds.
  • Our disappointment comes to meet God’s great mercies!
  • His faithful hand carries every promise.
  • He never leaves our side.
  • Through every fear He draws us near.
  • Wrong will be made right.
  • All is well because of God’s great love.

 

I wonder, do you believe God to be true to His promises? Can you see the grace of God shining through the clouds of your present turmoil? Can you see to the end of your disappointments where His mercy awaits you? Can you sense Him drawing you near. Can you hear him whisper to you, “All is well?!”
Draw near.  Surrender everything that gets between you and God.
The fears, the disappointments, the doubts, the regrets, the bitterness and anger. Put it all down. Lay it at the feet of Jesus and let Him draw you near to Him. Surrender and find victory. Let it be well in your soul.

 

 

God is love

Leave a reply

 

God is love. 1 John 4:8

 

Love is not God’s only attribute. He is also holy, just, righteous, all-powerful, wise, and everlasting. But one attribute of God that speaks clearly to us over the ages of time is that our unchanging and timeless God is love.

 

Love is not just what God does; love is who God IS.

 

The best known verse in the bible begins, “For God so loved the world, He gave…” Love is inherently forgiving and for giving. “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” (1 Corinthians 13) This is the picture of how God loves you and me.

 

Is God love in the middle of your deepest sorrows? Our darkest moments certainly test our faith. What comes out when life squeezes us reveals what is truly inside us. There is no room for pious religion when you are squeezed. In those moments God wants us to be real about our brokenness, our sorrow, and our disappointment. He also wants us to know this truth: None of this has any authority or power over His presence in us. Though my struggles again and again toss me to the ground like a ragamuffin doll, though I feel crushed under their weight, they are no match for Jesus in me who loves me, no matter how I feel.

 

How big is your God? How we view God does not change who He is, but it does change how we perceive our circumstances. Look at the heroes of God, how they are honest about their struggles with life and with God.

 

Rich Mullins was a short-lived Christian musician who gave us such inspiring songs like, “Sing Your Praise to The Lord,” “(Our God Is An)Awesome God,” and “Hold Me Jesus.” Yet he struggled greatly. I like how one writer described him: “A lover of God and a rebel in the church, Rich refused to let his struggles and his own darkness tear him away from a God he was determined to love.” (Or from a God determined to love him!) “Rich desired most of all to live a life of honest and reckless faith.”

 

The truth is God loves you, regardless of how you feel or what circumstances beset you. I hope when the darkness surrounds you that you will be able to sing, “Hold me Jesus – be my prince of peace.” Experience the light of His love as you say to God, “And still I will love you.”

 

“I would rather live on the verge of falling and let my security be in the all-sufficiency of the grace of God.”
– Rich Mullins

 

 

Resting and wrestling

Leave a reply

 

 

John Piper writes: “There is a restful side to the Christian life. “Come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest,” Jesus said in Matthew 11:28. “Be anxious for nothing . . . let your requests be made known to God . . . and the peace of God will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). There is rest and peace in the Christian soul.

 

But there is also wrestling. Jesus said in Luke 13:24, “Strive <wrestle/struggle> to enter by the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” At the end of his life, Paul said in 2 Timothy 4:7, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.” Keeping the faith is a fight to be fought and a race to be run.”

 

We’ve written quite a bit about the resting side of the Christian life. Unless you are facing mighty challenges yourself, who wants to pursue the kind of suffering that comes from a wrestling life? But the two are interrelated. We wrestle with our response to life challenges with the goal of finding rest. And, as we’ve commented before, we find rest in these trials because Christ-in-us has already won the battle and assured our victory, IF (and this is a very strong IF):

 

IF you are willing to believe God at His Word, even when it flies in the face of your present circumstances.

 

IF you believe that God is sovereign and He has a provident plan for your life.

 

IF you believe that you are an alien and foreigner in this land we call earth; that your real home is heaven.

 

IF you believe that you are a spiritual being with a temporary earthly shell, not merely a physical being with some small spiritual component.

 

IF you believe that God’s loving discipline is even better for us than the parental discipline of our childhood.

 

We wrestle with each of these tenets when we face difficulties and temptations. God knows that our wrestling makes us tired and can lead us to lose heart. He knows our wrestling can lead to a dangerous sense of despair. And so he reminds us:
“Consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you may not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.” (Hebrews 12:3-4)

 

If you are wrestling with pain, suffering, sorrow, unpleasant work or home life, there is good news. There comes from wrestling a sense of rest IF we believe what God has in store for us as His children.

 

“Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” ( v 7,11)

 

Maybe you need to wrestle harder. If so, rest in the confidence that Jesus-in-you has already secured the victory. Believe it.

 

 

Patience – Perseverance – Prayer

Leave a reply

 

 

We all want to be patient, but we want it right now! Folks have probably warned you, “Don’t pray for patience because God will give you trials to bring it about!” Trials can be an effective way to bring us to consider patience, but how many times in your life do they bring grumbling and resentment instead?

 

The truth is, our life was not designed to be one of self-indulgence and comfort. This short span on earth, relative to all eternity, is full of trials. Read through the New Testament and find that every book  deals with some aspect of trials, suffering, or other woes! Beyond just a learning experience, it is part of our call to follow Jesus:  “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.” 1 Peter 2:21

 

But that doesn’t leave us to despair, but to hope, because when we are squeezed by all sorts of trials, it brings the opportunity for God’s power to be revealed in us. That is James’ encouragement to us in chapter five. We’re called to be patient. Not just to wait until we get what we want, but to be patient for the Lord’s coming, when our trials and sorrows end.

 

We’re called to patient with each other. It is how we express our love to God Himself. Jesus said our purpose in life is to love God and love others, that others will know we are His disciples if we love one another.  And so James confirms this: “Don’t grumble against one another.”

 

Patience and perseverance are twin sisters. We can persevere because we practice patience. Likewise persevering helps us to be patient – with ourselves and with others.  Perseverance keeps on loving, keeps on hoping, keeps on waiting with expectation. Hope is for the future but faith is revealed in the moment. Perseverance reflects our real faith.

 

Where do we get such a persevering, patient faith?  We pray. If your prayer seems like a waste of time or a mundane routine to be endured, don’t believe it. The prayer of one fully committed to God, is effective. Ask for wisdom, strength, and courage to draw closer to Him so you can persevere. He will show you the way, one trial at a time, one moment at a time.  It’s a daily cycle: pursue patience, perseverance, and effective prayer.

 

“Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.” James 5:7-11 (excerpts)

Give thanks…when?!

Leave a reply

 

 

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

 

It is easy to thank God when times are good and things are going smoothly. But we are instructed to give thanks in ALL situations. Why? Because it is God’s profitable will for us. Now, I admit giving thanks was not the first thing on my mind the day I received my cancer diagnosis. My body was already broken down and I was so exhausted I didn’t know what to think, but I know giving thanks wasn’t at the top of my list. And yet, with the passing of a few weeks, it was easier to give thanks in – and for – revealing the cancer in my life. Why? Because it also revealed the cancer in my spiritual life. Depending too much on myself and ‘my rights’, lacking more discipline in my prayer life, and pride were as much of a cancer as the Leukemia that was killing me.  Furthermore, my physical cancer revealed  God’s protection over me. Had I pushed ahead with my plans to relocate to South America right away, I likely would not have been diagnosed, and that would have been a death sentence. If diagnosed, I likely would not have received the expert level of care that I received here.  Not only did I find God’s protection but also His provision. He provided a platform for reaching others with His truth and grace in the hospital environment, patients and staff. He provided time for me to grow up (to mature as James writes in the below passage). He provided opportunity to draw Marcia and me even closer together. He provided opportunity to learn and practice humility.

 

As you look back on the tough times in your life, can you see how those difficulties yielded benefit to you? Maybe you would still choose to have avoided them if you could. Maybe the pain of those memories continue to scar your life. But haven’t they also provided some good? It is the intent of our Great God to bring good out of distress. We are so used to weighing goodness on a scale of our own feelings, our comfort, and our personal gain, that it becomes so difficult to see how tough times can play out on the grander scale. Yes, there are seemingly senseless and completely unjust acts. Yes, the rain does fall on the just and unjust alike. But if we cannot find any reason to give thanks and pray continually even in those times, what can we hope to become? If our faith is only tested to be strong in the easy times, of what real use to us is it?

 

Whatever happens today, practice giving thanks, with continual prayer and petition to God. Know that He will not abandon you and He desires to redeem goodness from bad situations.  Ask Him for strength and wisdom to respond well, to persevere, and to finish His good work in you, so that you lack nothing.

 

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4 

 

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:4-7

 

 

Blessing through difficulties

Leave a reply

 

There is a blessing hidden in every trial in life but you have to be willing to open your heart to see them. – Unknown

 

This devotional from Life Action Ministries offers a simple and good reminder about looking for the blessings found in difficult times.

 

Can God Bless with Trials?

 

Interpreting life’s events can be a tricky undertaking. Our instinct is to assume that if something bad happens, it’s because God is displeased with us. We then go on what I call a wild hunt for sin—that desperate search for whatever we’ve done to bring on our calamity.

 

To be sure, sin will bring with it trials (Proverbs 13:15). The problem is, trials don’t necessarily indicate that sin is present.

 

James refers to “the testing of your faith” in James 1:3. Think about those very words: faith (a good thing) being tested by the events of life. In other words, God responds to something good He sees in our life by sending trials to grow it.

 

One of the greatest challenges of the Christian life is learning to embrace the trials God sends our way as gifts from Him. We use so much energy trying to escape or fight the tough situations we face, that we fail to see they have actually been given to us by God.

 

Are you going through a trial? Ask God for wisdom as to its source. According to James 1:5, God will liberally and graciously answer.

 

What is the greatest trial you are facing right now? Whether it is caused by sin or testing, the Spirit will specifically show you if you sincerely ask for wisdom. If it is testing, take time to thank God for His commitment to your life in giving you this trial.

 

BT: Of course, we know all this. I think the real question is not, Can God bless us with trials? The real question for me is, “Will I LET God bless me through trials?” Or will we let our frustrations get in the way? Isn’t it time to let God have His way in us…for our own good?