It is in trials and adversity that we are selected by God to endure difficult situations. It is not deliverance from but deliverance to that is at stake: Deliverance to the next level of spirituality by victory over circumstances.
Through God’s personal plan for our sometimes messed-up lives, God will deliver us up, not down – just stay with Bible doctrine, which is the power of God. Stand tall – stand firm on the promises of God.
Create a Promise Book and keep it with you. Load your book with as many promises and doctrines from God that you possibly can – memorize them all. Deploy them in times of trouble, for that’s why they’re there, and why God is there. Glorify Him in your thoughts and actions during trials and testing, for anything else brings glory to the enemy.
The secular world looks for the path of least resistance. The carnal believer does the same. Self-pity, self-defeat, self-dislike… all are enemies of the believer (reference Philippians 4:13). It is not our strength (1 Thessalonians 5:18), it is Christ’s – be grateful in all circumstances , doing so brings maximum growth to the believer, and maximum glory to the Lord.
Despair is a looking glass where we can see Christ (and self) and be glad in it. The cross of suffering opened the doors of eternity and released the power of God for our lives.
Both discipline and testing are for learning, for our benefit (2 Corinthians 4:11; Hebrews 12:5).
At times, things will happen to break us down. These things occur so God can build us up, and so we can be all we can be in Christ – through difficult circumstances, equal opportunity, and triumph, until Christ returns.
The discipline and/or daily challenges that cause us to suffer makes possible divine rewards, but only for those who patiently accept things as they come and handle them properly. Maturing believers take ownership of circumstances, both good and bad, through Bible doctrine stored in the soul, ready for immediate deployment.
Maturing believers respond, they do not react. Responding means clear thinking is applied both to view/handle the situation properly. Reacting brings the instability of emotion into the equation, which leads to disastrous outcomes, often times making our troubles worse. Be in control; stay in control, for the Lord is at your side. He will fight with you and for you.
As believers, must get a leash on our emotions, and they must be taught their place, which is in the background as an appreciator of life and the circumstances within it. One would not put a five-year-old behind the wheel while driving 70mph on the freeway, thus we keep our unstable emotions in their proper place: in the back, firmly strapped into a car seat.
In your daily walk with the Lord, log victory after victory for Him. He is there with you through it all. The rewards in eternity are unbelievable; receiving our rewards in eternity will be well worth any suffering we may endure in this life. Hang in there and hang on to the cross.
Practice gratitude, rest in the arms of the Lord, and get busy loading up with God’s promises.