All tagged tribulation
We have spoken of our troubles and afflictions as they relate to our faith through prayer, and today we revisit this topic again. Pastor E.M. Bounds simply called his short devotional thought "Affliction", and wrote "The greatest value in trouble comes to those who turn to God in prayer. In fact, the only way to endure trouble patiently, is to pray consistently.” Scripture tells us this...
This morning let’s study another purpose for trouble in this world. The author of my morning devotional reading put it this way, "Trouble makes the earth undesirable and creates a desire for heaven within us... It is the path of tribulation that leads to that world." Our problems really do turn us towards God for help. They do this by taking our self-assuredness away and humbling us before Him. You see, we aren't meant to be satisfied with our current world, faith, and surroundings, we should see paradise and eternity before us, and a perfection of spirit and soul just beyond where we struggle. Our opening passage from Revelation encourages us with a description of heaven...
Today we continue to live in a world of tribulation, suffering, and affliction, and it surrounds us at almost every turn. However, scripture tells us that we have been delivered from all of that suffering by Jesus Christ who has overcome the world. Given today’s world are we at peace, and of good cheer, or have we resolved ourselves to be anxious and worried over the state of things? Perhaps we have missed the fact that our troubles bring us closer to Jesus, and press us together with Him in a way that transforms the grapes of our faith into a fine wine for our Father’s table.
We build character by facing trials and tribulations, and no one knows this better than the Christian. Our suffering hardens us in our belief, and builds up the resolve we have in our faith. Surviving our individual tribulations opens our eyes to the true character of Christ. However, our joint suffering with Him, and with one another, will bring us together as one; one in love, one in forgiveness, one in our faith, and one in every character trait of Christ that reflects the Father. Do we value who Jesus is enough to suffer with Him so that we will become as He is… free of imperfection?
4/08/2022
We thank God often for our many blessings but do we thank Him sufficiently for the hardships and suffering that led us to them? It seems that we are more inclined to view our faith and interaction with the Lord through rose colored glasses, and quickly set aside the memories of suffering to make room for the wonderful blessings that came as a result. Could God have led the Israelites out of captivity if they hadn’t first been placed in bondage? Would the blessing of the manna have come if they hadn’t been starving in the wilderness? Today let’s look at the great moments of faith and blessing in our lives, and thank God, and Jesus for what led us to them in the first place… the storms.
As Christian’s we believe in all of God’s Holy Word, and the gospel of Jesus Christ. We don’t do this because we have seen God, or touched Jesus, (although a few have claimed they have), but out of faith, and as a result of our faith we are blessed time and time again. Each morning when I rise my first words are “Thank you Father for this day, and your many blessings.” I pray this way because I know His blessings are coming. I may face any number of trials, or endure great hardship today, but I know that I am not alone, and that He will bless me in everything I encounter, not out of some foreknowledge of what the Lord has planned for my coming day, but out of my faith in His Word, and because I believe in Him, and His Son Jesus. So… How is our faith today? Are we trusting in God to bless us? Do we find Him in the midst of our storms, and do we walk to Him held afloat by our faith?
We are not going to escape suffering in this world. As we go through life we will face sickness, death, all forms of persecution, and various trials by the bushel full, one thing is certain however, and this is that our God has promised we will not face any of this alone, because He is with us. In this place we will weep, cry out in pain, and mourn, but in every valley the Lord will be with us to comfort us. Now we are meant to both laugh and cry, to be young and old, and to walk from day to night, and back, but one day, when we reach our final destination, all of this will be behind us; our small joys will become eternal, and all of our tears will be dried forever.
No matter what troubles we face as Christians, we not only find that God leads us through them, but that during the most immense, intense, and frightening of them, the love of God gives us not only victory, but leads us triumphant through Heaven’s streets in celebration of our complete victory over them. We not only survive life’s ordeals, but thrive in the midst of them. How exhilarating it is to feel the wind in our face during a storm, or how alive we are when we experience the intense fear of standing too close to a precipice. So God is with us in our storms, and in every danger, but not to simply watch over us, but to lead us through them victorious, and then in triumphant procession as we reflect His glory.
As we approach Christmas morning and our celebration of the birth of Christ, let’s take this opportunity to do some soul searching, and begin by asking ourselves the straightforward question… “What is the condition of my faith?” Given the difficulties of the past two years with the COVID virus our relationships with the Lord, and each other, may have become strained. Perhaps we have walked away, or simply slipped into a sense of malaise concerning church. These have been years like none other in modern times. Satan has successfully renewed man’s age old fear of death, and used it to separate us from God who is life.
We enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ who suffered terribly as He obeyed the will of God, and redeemed us from sin, yet so many believers think that we should not face tribulation in our lifetimes. This is far from what scripture tells us, but even in our storms we will find hope, comfort, and protection in the Lord. Then, when the storms subside, the light of God will shine upon us and we will find ourselves to have grown in faith and our relationship to have been made all the stronger.