The Unexpected Things... Life is full of surprises, some good and some bad, and how we deal with these surprises will guide our emotional and spiritual steps forward from those positions. When good surprises are met with humility and gratitude, blessings can flow; when they are met with a sense of entitlement and braggadocios, then resentment, hostility, deep loneliness and emptiness may follow. In situations where bad things happen, if they are met with humility, trust, faith and gratitude...yes, gratitude, then blessings and comfort follow. We should never meet hardships with anger and hostility toward God, a sense that He does not know what he is doing, because then perhaps correction or a sustained suffering will follow (i.e. Jonah after Nineveh), in which we will learn a hard lesson about trusting God even when we dont understand. Job clearly understood the need to trust God in all circumstances, and was richly rewarded for his faith, how different his story would have been if his faith had failed him in the suffering. God never leaves us nor forsakes us, period. If we truly believe that God is in control, then our joy rises, our tolerance for hardships increase, and His blessings flow...no matter what the circumstances! Anybody can feel blessed when good things happen, but the faithful can feel blessed in any situation, and this positive attitude is like demon repellent! Those who focus on a sliver of light in an otherwise stormy sky and praise God for it, or who can be thankful for lifes blessings in the storms of sickness or hardship truly know the gift of God, the eternal blessings that far outweigh the temporary situations of earth...dont you want to be that person? _____ The joy of Christ and the joy of the world cannot consist together. A heart delighted with worldly joy cannot feel the consolations of the Spirit; the one of these destroys the other: but in sanctified trouble, the comforts of Gods word are felt and perceived in a most sensible manner. ---Abraham Wright Trials teach us what we are; they dig up the soil, and let us see what we are made of. ---Charles Spurgeon To learn strong faith is to endure great trials. I have learned my faith by standing firm amid severe testings. --George Mueller In any trial, in any bitter situation, you are not alone, you are not helpless, you are not a victim. You have a tree, a cross, shown to you by the Sovereign God of Calvary. Whatever the trial or temptation, it is not more than you can bear. It is bearable. It can be handled. You can know as Joseph knew, You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive (Genesis 50:20). --- Kay Arthur _____ Job 1:20-22 ESV, Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, “Naked I came from my mothers womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong. Jonah 4:1-4 ESV (After Nineveh repented, which Jonah thought was unjust), But it displeased Jonah exceedingly,[a] and he was angry. And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” And the Lord said, “Do you do well to be angry?” Isaiah 41:10 NIV, So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV, Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. Psalm 46:1, God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Psalm 23 ESV, The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwellf in the house of the Lord forever.
Posted on: Wed, 01 Oct 2014 04:11:58 +0000