05/15/2025
Troubles are a part of our lives. In daily life we face many trials, but as Christians and believers in God the Father, we face them from a point of great advantage and strength. We find confidence in God's ability to bring us through them, and they strengthen our faith as we face them, but what of the good times?
“For by you I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall. This God—his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.”
Psalms 18:29-30 ESV
What are your troubles today? Maybe this is a good day and you are between the trials that come, and in this you are giving thanks to God, but then again, perhaps you are facing a time of great challenge. Our faith in Jesus should be sufficient to carry us through both days. Both circumstances bring us closer to the Father, but it might surprise you to know that in the good times we are more likely to stray.
The day began with me awakening refreshed from a sound night’s sleep. The sun was streaming through the window, it was a beautiful spring morning, and I didn't have a care in the world. I slipped out of bed and stretched before heading to the coffee pot and my comfortable chair to read, pray, and write. But, the morning was so perfect that once I had poured my coffee, I forewent my morning time of devotion and turned on the news.... I had taken the first misstep in what should have been a perfect day.
Every journey begins with one step, and pilgrimages of faith are no different. The day in my example was exceptionally wonderful, but my first step had taken me off the path that brought me to God each day. Does this sound familiar to you? On good days are you inclined to say a quick "thank you", but during days of trouble you seek God fervently with all your heart? We read a warning regarding this in Deuteronomy, and witness an example of it as Jesus prayed fervently in the Garden of Gethsemane…
“"Take care lest you forget the Lord your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today, lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them, and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied, then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery,”
Deuteronomy 8:11-14 ESV
“And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”
Luke 22:44 ESV
We don’t read of Jesus being this way, but it is easy for us to become complacent on the sunny days. The temptation is to rest and enjoy the day that the Lord has made... and there is merit in doing so... but not at the expense of doing so alone or neglecting His will. So, let's skip forward a hundred psalms from our first scripture and read again...
“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
Psalms 118:24 ESV
We like this verse and know the feeling well! That overflowing sense of euphoria and joy in trouble-free days of plenty. Days like that make it easy for us to stop reading there and miss the very next verse.
“Save us, we pray, O Lord! O Lord, we pray, give us success!”
Psalms 118:25 ESV
When we cherry pick verses of scripture we often feed the mood we are feeling, and this one is specifically quoted on glorious days, but this particular Psalm is one of thanksgiving for God's rescue from a time of hardship. It begins with words like "Thanks" and "His steadfast love endures." So, God has delivered the house of Aaron, and now a period of joy is at hand, but the psalmist knows that this is only a lull between trials and following the flowing joy and praise of verse 24 immediately comes this verse... "save us we pray."
Why should we ask the Lord to save us on days of joy and peace? It is because as long as we are earthly creatures we will find that between the periods of calm in our lives there will be more troubles. But don’t fret, because on a spiritual level we find relief from them. However, this leads us back to the thought, and the dangerous reality. that during our times of plenty we are most likely to lose our zeal and faith. This is why we continue our prayers as we do in times of joy and plenty.
Paul knew this too. He wrote to the Philippians and spoke to them of it. He told them how to face the good times and the bad times alike. His words are no less profound today than they were when he spoke them to the Philippians those many years ago:
“I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
Philippians 4:12-13 ESV
So, we are in danger of sinning and wandering away from our faith during the times of joy and plenty in life because we feel like we can handle those times and don’t need God’s help. This comes as a result of our human nature, yet in reality we are in more danger than we are during our seasons of hardships. This is true because in times of great suffering we readily seek God, and call out to Jesus, but during our days of plenty and smooth sailing we are inclined to depend on our own selves and to store our faith away in a closet where it can become diminished or forgotten. Are we in such a place today? Or are we seeking the Lord in the midst of a challenging season that has brought us to our knees? We are warned of such things, but are we heeding the warning?
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for the times of suffering that bring me to great faith, but I thank you all the more for my perseverance in faith during those sweet times between hardships… those times when I am tempted to forget you but keep praying, and my eyes fixed on you. Never let me become complacent as I seek out my salvation in fear and trembling because all of life is a struggle, and every moment a spiritual battle. Let my attentiveness to your will, commandments, and my prayers be equally fervent in times of plenty, just as they are in those times when I need your salvation and delivery. You come to my rescue when I am suffering, but when I rest during the peaceful days, I pray that you will remain in the forefront of my thoughts… never letting me stray from you. In the slow-moving current between the swift waters of my life, and in the wide smooth miles as my river of prayers flow continuously into you, the sea of my faith, be with me always Father, and let your Holy Spirit reside there with me. Carry me safely and closer to home Jesus... even when the pace of my life has slowed, and I am tempted to feel safe in myself. Holy, Holy, Holy are you the Lord my God who is with me always, and desires that I be there with you too. Holy are you Heavenly Father who are patient with me when my attention is diverted away from you. You are forgiving when, like the prodigal son, the hardships in my life drive me back home to where you are waiting. Praised be your name Abba, and merciful are you in both the good and bad times alike. Your grace abounds and in it I find comfort forever, and forevermore. Hear this my prayer today and keep me close.
Amen, Amen, Amen! And Hallelujah!
Supporting Scripture:
“ 6So you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him. 7 For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills, 8 a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, 9 a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. 10 And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land he has given you.
11 “Take care lest you forget the Lord your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today, 12 lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them, 13 and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery,”
Deuteronomy 8:6-14 ESV
Rich Forbes