God of all Comfort

 

                                                God of all Comfort

                                                         By Penny Williams

 

Spring is here! Summer is near! Pine pollen covers everything and there are wasps and hornets that squeeze their way onto our screened porch.  If I feel brave, I capture one in a bottle and put him back outside where he belongs. Other times I grab my bug spray.  While on this earth, there will always be something that either gets into our food, nests on our porch, finds its way to your attic or under the hood of your car, or eats the leaves off your tomato plants. Not to mention the snakes. I remember a time living in Florida driving down a highway and talking to my babysitter, my peripheral vision told me I mistakenly ran over what looked like a huge log in the road. When I looked into the rear-view mirror of the car, I saw the grandpappy of alligators unhurt and lumbering back into the bush. My old Corvair was never the same.

There are countless reasons and explanations when searching for the causes of our trials. When as a freshly born-again believer filled with joy, fiery zip and zeal, I had thousands [a slight exaggeration] of ideas about pleasing God. In fact, most of the time I ran ahead of Him, tripping, stumbling, but still carrying His torch and message of love. I was out to change the world! Exasperated, my girlfriend looked at me and said,

“You are in need of patience.”

That statement stopped me in my tracks and made me think. Has anyone thought about what we go through to get this priceless crown of patience? If you were like me and in need of patience you would be placed in situations with a smile, told to wait, be calm and see. Hours turned into days of waiting then months and even years. We go through tough times to bear the fruit of patience. For us to have the fruit of patience we must link up with endurance. We are going to have to endure the trial. Patience is a must for our Father’s children. The Holy Spirit begins to restructure our heart and thinking patterns. There are times in our lives when we must slow down and once again listen:

“Be still and know I am God.”

Our lives are beyond what we think we know and yet we put so much store in the physical. Jesus knew this when He taught us through His parables. We could identify as He talked. He patiently spoke through The Spirit of Truth whose words miraculously opened our hearts, our minds, our souls and yes, even our flesh. All in love. Every person you see who has been truly born again is a walking miracle. His work in our hearts never ceases because He never stops teaching us.

“So do not throw away your confidence, it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised.” He. 10:35-36

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” He.12:1

“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.” Ro. 5:1-5

Nothing is as sweet to me when my heart is grieving when talking to a friend and she says to me:

“I know exactly how you feel because it has been 3 years since my daughter passed and just now, I am starting to feel like living again.”

As I listened to her, I was comforted by how The Holy Spirit was consoling me.  He uses His people to give us the comfort we need in our lives. He will use a stray homeless kitten! Our Father knows what it takes to give you comfort.  A friend who has experienced the same thing you have begins to comfort you with the right words at the right time. As we listen, The Holy Spirit begins to heal our hearts, and we become fruit bearers of His promises and purpose.

In Christ, everything becomes turned around. He gives you a new heart to store up His goodness, new eyes so you can see through His lens, new thoughts so you can think His way. Your speech will be filled with His grace that has changed your life.

Have you ever talked to a person who has a storehouse of patience? Years ago, I was talking to a lady who was married to a very immature man. I watched him on his motor bike tearing up the yard. Her response, “I have enough patience for the both of us.” She had patience and character!

Something miraculous happens when you come through a tough trial, you feel lighter and as if you can almost touch the hand of God.  Do you understand why? Because your heart has given the problem to God. There are some things that we are unable to carry. When that happens, you will receive the peace of God.

Is there a divine connection between humility and patience? I believe they both go together; you cannot have one without the other. Humility will never say, “I deserve it!”  And, will never brag about themself but boast upon God’s will and grace. Patience gently takes your hand and whispers, “Don’t give up I am still here, just a little bit longer.”  

Here is a heart check for you.

When we are confronted with another roadblock, how do our hearts respond?

Do we:

Stretch our faith and see the possible blessing throughout the challenge? Yes, you can do this! Look for it!

                                                                 The Test of Forgiveness

Have we forgiven everyone who has offended us?

a. Those who have lied to us

b. Those who have stolen from us

c. Cheated, betrayed and rejected us

e. Broken promises again

“For if you forgive men when they have sinned against you, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Mt.6:14

True godly believers have no other option. This came straight from our Savior. We must forgive everyone. When we do, our Father throws it into the sea of forgetfulness; never to be brought up again. The matter is finished.

I could name countless cases why we should keep that chip on our shoulder and not forgive, but they would be words from the world and not God. Unforgiveness is like drinking a glass of arsenic slowly. There are always adverse effects from unforgiveness.

Most of the time we do not recognize that our very problem is a camouflage of redesigning us into a beautiful piece of pottery.

It could be something like driving in the country and looking for a chicken farm to buy a bunch of chicks. You stop at a roadside fruit stand and ask where the farm is and he tells you, “Just over the hill.”  You drive over the hill and a few more hills, until finally you see the farm.

The point to that story is to never give up on your walk. The hinderances are sent by God to prepare you to be strong and to shine like a diamond.

Our physical battles can become tiring. Here is our hope in Jesus Christ: When we understand that pride is deceiving and selfishness is like greed which is like idolatry [Col.3:5] and repent and turn around, we will be waved past ourselves and into the blessings of humility and patience.  

Which comes first? Humility or patience? Humility must come first for patience to have its perfect work inside of your heart. Humility listens to God and will bury your pride. A heartfelt acceptance and understanding of our inabilities will give us the peace we need. You are unique and special. If God made you an apple, you can be the shiniest, best and loveliest apple around. Not so, if you’ve been trying to be an orange. There are some things we need to let go.  Be thankful and content in the hand He has set before you to do while you are here. Humble yourself and honor God. Listen closely to Him as He teaches you, He could be giving you a thankful heart.  Learn who you are in Christ and do not allow your past to identify you. Your past is forgiven and buried. Your identity is in Jesus Christ. You are learning to bear His fruit.

If you are truly bearing His fruit, wouldn’t you be attractive to those around you to taste and see God’s goodness?

                                                                             Fear God

We go through our obstacle courses to learn to fear God. We cannot see Him, but we know He is there, He knows our every move, every thought and we have read about Him in the Bible. He tests our hearts and minds. We have experienced His love, forgiveness, mercies, grace and patience. He judges us according to His word. There are times we are judged by the very words we speak. Why? Because we haven’t given a thought to fearing our Father. We haven’t given any thought to the consequences of our words or actions. Some of our consequences are short lived, others are long standing. If we have made an unthinking, fleshly, wrong decision for wrong reasons, there could be a consequence. Learn to be honest with the truth that you have found in Christ.

We have all done this. You are not alone.

There are times, we do not take the time to ask God through prayer about important decisions that “looks good” to you and we discover we have too easily walked out of the will of God. In other words, we have opened a door we should not have walked through. As we walked through that door, our Father never fails to teach us what we must learn.

It seems we sometimes become shattered so He can pick up the pieces again. I believe there are times when we make things complicated in our lives because we are selfishly impatient. We place The Holy Spirit on the shelf and refuse to listen to God. “We might think, I have always done it this way; and I will continue to do it this way.”

The Bible tells us to “fear God and live.” Our Father teaches those whom He loves. We learn to fear Him. Saying our walk is a process bears repeating.

“The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them. Psalm 34:7

“Fear the Lord, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing.” Psalm 34:9

“Come my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.” Psalm 34:11

There isn’t any amount of bargaining in prayer, whining, crying, temper tantrums, screaming, complaining, fretting, or pouting, that will change God’s ways. If He loves you and you are His child; YOU WILL LEARN HOW to fear God. You will learn and what you will learn most is that it is He who has the last say and not you.  

To sum up our thoughts about the trials and tests we go through:

1.      We go through the trials and tests, to prove that our faith is genuine. 1Pe.1:3-9

2.      To develop patience and character. Ja.1:2-4

3.      To fear God, as it will keep you from sinning. God teaches us to fear Him. Dt.8:5

4.      To be fruit bearers. John 15:2

5.      To give comfort to those in the same way God has comforted us. 2Co.1:3-7

6.      To forgive all who have offended you. Mt.6:14

7.      The tests of selfishness and pride vs humility and patience.

8.      Other times, your trial is to develop a thankful heart.

 

I am sure there are scores of reasons why we go through our tough times, one is that the experiences make us stronger and wiser. The day will come when we can finally say to our Father:

 “I have learned my lesson Father and learned well!”

Pray with me:

Heavenly Father,

I need your strength; I need your forgiveness and love. From my heart, I forgive all who have offended me and purposely let them all go once and for all. Cleanse my heart Father and fill me with your forgiveness. I have sinned against you and others. [name your sins]_______. Take all selfishness and pride from me. Teach me your ways, your word and how to fear You. Open my eyes to see your hand in my life. Use me to be a fruit bearer. Come into my life and direct all my steps, season my mouth with your salt and let me be one who shines for You in all my ways.

In Jesus name I ask, amen.

If you believe that Jesus is Lord and have prayed in faith, welcome into the family of God! The Bible says that you are a new creature in Christ, behold all the old things are passed away.  Find a good Bible, a good Bible believing church and join one of the small groups as they will pray for you and help you through the tough times.

 

Pruning vs Purging

 

                                            Pruning vs Purging

                                                                                             By Penny Williams

 

It seems that I have developed a love hate relationship with my roses. I have been pricked so many times I’ve lost counting. I have one lone yellow fellow whom I call the yellow monster who climbs up on his trellis as if to see “his kingdom” every year. His followers are all the red roses that are planted in front of our home. I am not big on roses because of their thorns. Like that of some people, they don’t want to be touched! Too bad! Off with their heads I say!

Pruning them shortly after their blooms are quite finished and with good structure a deeper prune is given before winter comes, keeps us happy and humble. It is the process of pruning they do not like. When I feed and water them, they appear to forget their looks and hardship for a while.

So, it is within the Body of Christ, the predicaments we find ourselves going through; we continue to ask, “What and why are we going through such things? What did I do wrong?” As a Christian we know our sins are forgiven. And why at times do we still wrestle with the memories of the past? Things that have been forgiven, yet replayed in our hearts?

 Pruning is something like a haircut, it aerates the plant and causes it to grow better and gives off at least twice the number of flowers.  

Websters Dictionary says about pruning:

       To reduce by eliminating superfluous matter

       To remove as superfluous ~ away all ornamentation

       To cut off or cut back parts of for better shape or more fruitful growth~

       To cut away from what is unwanted or superfluous.                                                                                                       

Is it not true, as a believer we are representing King Jesus? Our words and our behaviors should reflect His Love.   As God is our Creator, doesn’t He have the right to take away our dross? What has become overwhelming or crass in our character and flaws our witness?

Purging turns up the heat a bit.         

To clear of guilt

To free from moral or ceremonial defilement

The removal of elements or members is regarded as undesirable and esp. as treacherous or disloyal.

 

Those tears that you have cried, were saved into a bottle. Everything that happens to us is for our good. We cannot see or understand it, nor can we feel it. But we can sense it in our spirits.  We have a good God who always wins. Although, we may not understand the whole picture, it is time to begin to us the faith given to us and trust Him in your heart.     

 John 15:1-17 niv states:

THE VINE AND THE BRANCHES

1.      I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.

2.      He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.

3.      You are already clean because of the Word I have spoken to you.

4.      Remain in me and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

5.      I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him; he will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing.

6.      If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

7.      If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.

8.      This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

9.      As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.

10.  If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in His love.

11.  I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.

12.  My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.

13.  Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.

14.  You are my friends if you do what I command.

15.  I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.

16.  You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit- fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.

17.  This is my command: Love each other.

Once you have given your life to Jesus, what in the world could ever compare to His love? The whole Bible is about His love. We have been privileged to have His word.

 

The KJV says purging and in the NIV it says pruning and in the AMP, it says takes away or pruning. Either way, pruning and purging are different forms and levels of chastisement. If you are a child of God, you will be either pruned or purged. We learn through the Word and our experiences. We do not like to be corrected, but isn’t it better now than to miss the boat later? Read about our Heavenly Fathers love: De.8:5, Ps.94:12, Pr.3:11, 3:12 Re.3:19     Our Heavenly Father cares enough to put a stop to us when we become too independent, self-confident and head-strong in the wrong direction. We belong to HIM, not to the world. Since that is the case, why is it that we give so much credit and homage to the world?

Love is shown in so many ways and usually by action. Jesus spoke many loving and teaching words to us and through them we become cleansed. Vs 3. His word is holy. Everything He spoke was pure. When Jesus went to the cross and suffered for our sins, He paid the complete and final price for us! He was victoriously resurrected on the 3^rd day blasting away any sting of death! All those who believe in Jesus and know Him, who have repented from their sins have eternal life. Jesus was sent by God to be the ultimate sacrifice and fulfill prophecy for us! He is alive! He lives! He is our Messiah! When eyes are opened and become born-again, it is not of themselves. God says He has foreordained you and picked you before the very foundation of the world. Can you wrap your head around those verses? The Bible continues to say, He knew you and loved you before you knew Him. He was sent to heal the sick. If you have sinned, you are sick. The Bible says we have all sinned, therefor we are all sick. Think about this: When we are born again through Christ and our eyes are opened, not only does God give us a new heart, but we are healed from the slavery of sins of the world! We are set free from captivity!

No one ever said that when you become a believer, you’ll live in a rose garden! Even if you do, there are still thorns. We live on planet earth that is still cursed.

The world gives you comforting lies, illusions about yourself and will place a self-righteous attitude of justification in your heart that feeds your ego. We listen to the news all the time.

The other night I was watching a program about Celine Dion. She is from Quebec, Canada and the world was truly her oyster. She adored her fans. Throughout the whole time she performed, she was plagued with hindrances. Completely shattered, her husband passed from throat cancer and Celine contacted a very rare disease called, “Stiff person syndrome” involving unbearable symptoms of seizures, tremors and much pain. She is quoted as saying, “It is possible that a person can have a career and raise children at the same time.” She was the youngest of 14 children and raised in a devout Roman Catholic family.  

Welcome into the family of God: Everything that you have placed in your heart will be pruned and purged at every turn. As you grow, you will begin to see the stains of jealousies, pride and selfishness that are still in your heart with a magnifying glass. The closer we get to eternal life, the clearer our shortcomings are seen and the humbler we become. You know what? This is exactly where our Father wants us to be!

I know of a man who is well known for his wisdom and has spent his entire life studying about God’s wisdom. He has written: “There is one thing I am fearful about and that is that I do not have enough love for others.”  All his many hours of studies, countless books written, have not given him the peace or consolation of knowing how to love. This tells me that one can have great amounts of knowledge and wisdom, yet no peace. Only God’s love will give a person peace.

Can we be honest with ourselves and examine our hearts to see how much of the world we are still holding on to?

 

 

 

 

Here are a few superfluous things that we need to think about and deal with:

 

Too selfish?

Why do we think so much of ourselves? God created us below Him, not above Him.  Selfishness is the number one reason why marriages get divorced. One person retains a hard heart while the other’s heart is soft and pliable wanting to work it out. The world says that you are number one, not God. He says for us to forgive and honor one another above ourselves.  Unselfishness will allow the branch to bend like that of a willow, that says, “How can I help you?”  Selfishness stiffens and rots until it breaks off the vine.

Too much pride?

Pride blinds, argues, paralyzes and says, “it is all about me.” God hates pride. All arrogance will fail. You will be humbled.  Either you will get rid of it or God will. Pride is a camouflage of weakness that is bred through lies.

Too vain?

What made you give into a lying spirit? With all our studies, isn’t it time to see our hearts the way God sees it, through His word? Ask yourself, “What am I vain about?” My knowledge? Looks? God has His way, even gently to tell you. “Do not think yourself higher than others.”  Wake up!  Get your eyes off yourself and onto God.

Perhaps you are a gossip?

The book of James says that Your mouth either speaks life or death, builds up or tears down.  Gossiping destroys another’s character and your integrity. What you say will boomerang right back to you. Too many times, we give a self-fulfilled prophecy when we judge another.  Isn’t it interesting that Jesus said, we will be judged by every idle word we speak!  

Greed or Lust?

Greed only thinks about more and is never satisfied. Overnight we could lose everything. There is very little peace when the gods of greed and lust silently and slyly seduce you back into friendship with the world. Ask yourself where have I been greedy? Is it overeating? We love those second or third helpings. Is it through your eyes when you are in church? Do you blameshift your sins upon another?  In Christ you have the authority to put cast them away.  Get away from those thorns in your rose garden.

Unthankful?

If you have an unthankful heart, cheer up; things will happen to make you thankful. Listening to one of my sons talk about our meager beginnings and the various problems that arose while they were growing up and the thankful hearts that were formed, is music to this single mother’s ears. Not one of us had an easy life. Nothing was handed to us. I knew they had to be strong in all areas to face the world. I am thankful that I could not afford to give them everything they wanted, but taught them to work for what they desired. Do your children a favor and do not give them all that you missed out when you were growing up. As they grow, they will see what you were doing and call you blessed.

Impatient?

The world is proud of being impatient and boldly brags about it. While the believer is stumbling over toys left out, the baby is crying and needs to be fed, the dinner is burnt, the dog has chewed up one of the legs of the table and your sweet cat has played with the toilet paper all over the bathroom! How do you respond? Can you see how God’s spirit is working in your life to produce more fruit? Use what God has given to you, the eyes of your heart to discern what is going on. You are in the middle of being a giant fruit producer!  Always remember, there are those who are going through much worse things. Stop, and ask God for help in the faith He has given to you. Believe it! Stand upon it!

Not enough empathy?

Take the time to think what it would be like to be in another’s shoes. Think about those nations whose leaders have tortured and killed Christians for their faith. Think about those who are still blind and cannot see or hear the truth. Think about those who are being raised in abusive conditions. Those who have lost a son or daughter on the street, with drugs, disease or in war.  Some of us have so much empathy that it drips over the glass. There are times when all you can do is pray for them.

Not loving enough?

We circle right back around to His love. Jesus said in verses 9-11

“As the Father loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.”

 We are somewhat like the roses that we grow and need continued pruning and purging. No, it is not always fun or an easy life, but isn’t it worth being obedient and having His total and complete joy in our hearts knowing we are in His will?

When we are pruned, our faith is tested. Our Father begins to remove what needs to be gone and replaces it with His love.

As Christians our walk is a PROCESS. There are no shortcuts. The living hope that He has given us through His grace is our lifeline.  We learn by every single word that we read, study and through the experiences we walk through. Only our Father can process our need for pruning or purging singly, customized and little by little, molding and remolding us into the likeness of His son’s image as we go.

Are we listening to Him teach us as we go through the pruning?

Can we hear Him say, “Love one another” as we read those red letters?

Our Father God does not waste anything.  If we do not learn it, some other experience will come along to teach us what He desires for us to learn.  He is in the business of transformations.

He requires us to abide in Him and love Him through our obedience from our hearts. When we do, His joy is coupled within our hearts and we are fulfilled. Through every pruning or purging we become just a little bit more toughened in His love and restrengthened.  Then, we are called His friends. We now know that we have been appointed and chosen by our Father to bear good fruit. If we are bearing the good fruit of unselfish love, the world will see and know we are His.

Our walk will forever be about God’s love.

Think about it: We are a branch! A branch that must stay connected to the vine for us to live and produce fruit.  We are dependent upon Him and in need of His help, this is why we call upon Him to bring us through the pruning we receive. Perhaps this is one reason why Paul said, pray over everything.  A branch upon the vine can do nothing without the vine! We get everything from Jesus. And our Heavenly Father sees that it is done.

Let’s pray:

Heavenly Father,

We thank You for being our teacher, drawing us closer through Your Son’s words. Thank You for Your love, and for drawing us closer and teaching us how to love through Your Son’s obedience. Thank You for revealing your thick dividing line here on earth between the world, flesh and the devil. Thank You for revealing this connection. Forgive us for not loving in the way You have shown to us. Take over our hearts, our minds, our souls and our flesh to resist anything that would displease You. We choose to build upon Your love and trust in You and have our joy complete in You. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

 

For those who have not yet accepted Jesus as your Savior, pray:

Heavenly Father,

I ask that you would forgive my sinful heart. [name your sins]_____. I repent Father.  I ask that You take over my life and purpose to be all that I can be in You. Re-arrange my life to put you first above all and teach me Your ways. Open my eyes that I would read of the greatness of Your mercies and grace. Fil up my heart with Your love and lead me in Your path and Your ways instead of mine. Guide me and direct me through the tough times and never leave me. In Jesus name I ask, amen.

If you have prayed this prayer from your heart, the Bible says that you have been born – again. Find a good Bible believing church, buy a good Bible and join a study group. They will pray with you when you go through pruning. Jesus will never leave you or forsake you. Welcome into the family of God! 

Trials and Transformations

 

                                            

 

 

 

 

                                                         Trials and Transformations

                                                              By Penny Williams

 

Did you ever wonder why you are here? What purpose do you have on this earth? We know that being a wife or staying single is a calling and so is having children. When I think of being held responsible for developing little minds into the formation of goodness and all the many challenges that arise in the process, I think to myself; “what a huge task we’ve been given.”  Everything begins at home. This is the first place where children begin to learn and have an example of how to act and what to say or believe.

We become awed by those who are literally called to grow luscious, gorgeous food for us to eat. While driving in the countryside, I love to see the beauty of orange pumpkins growing in the field. Such glorious paintings of orange, so big and so beautiful! They speak unto themselves the abundance of life while autumn begins to hum them to a sleep.  The independence of yellow squash vining in the ditches in the Blue Ridge mountains has never failed to remind me what an amazing God we have! We used to live up there and I discovered that almost anything would grow in that red clay. God Himself oversees all the seeds.

I have a friend who is a passionate giver! This is her artistry. She is completely joyful over sending cards when you lose a loved one or a pet. She helps her church to plan a meal for the seniors and decorates their tables with colors of love! If she could reach up to one of those luscious clouds in the sky to bring us a smile, she would. Every day is Valentine Day for her. I can honestly say, her joy is made complete when she plans, decorates and gives to others. If you are in need for an answer to a question, knock on her door! If she doesn’t know the answer, she will find out for you!  Her heart literally breaks when her neighbor is sick or is suffering a loss. I am blessed to have her as a friend and neighbor.

Whatever your position, whatever reason you are here on this earth today, whether it be teaching, caretaking, giving, pet care, construction worker, police or guard, a floral arranger, waitress, attorney or judge, ditch digger, or salesman. Whatever your call and vocation, we need you and you are important to us.

What about those who go through battle after battle, confused in their minds, are weighed down with physical ailments and are just plain tired of fighting?

What about those filled without hope and riddened with hatred?

Those who have been unknowingly corrupted and brainwashed?  Those who are being used to test your heart?

Sure, it is unfair and what about all those corrupt judges who keep the good people who have prayed publicly, behind bars because they “offend” others and the evil ones who have murdered, are pardoned?  

Did you ever wonder to yourself, “Why did God cause this to happen to me?” Be assured, there are reasons for everything that happens to us. When we go through a very tough trial, our hearts are tested to see if our faith is genuine.

God knows, but He wants you to see what is in your heart and what you still need to clean up.

Ask yourself if your faith is genuine? Unlike that of fool’s gold, but the real thing.

Every time we are tested and tried, we are transformed inch by inch.  Your trials work for you, not against you. Our walk is not an easy walk, but a narrow road that leads to eternal life.

Here is 1 Peter 1:3-9 from the New International Version (NIV):

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

Our new birth brings us living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We have a LIVING HOPE! All because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ! You have His Holy Spirit alive in our hearts! He is living inside of you! Everywhere you go, you are carrying the Kingdom of God with you!

4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,

We have a God given endowment in Christ waiting for us in heaven! As one being born-again, this is your birthright!  Can you possibly imagine?  Believe it! You are getting ready to graduate!

 

5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

Have faith in God! Get faith! Sleep it and eat it! Believe His word is true and act upon it!  His power is shielding you and preparing you to SEE and experience Your salvation. You will see the manifestation of your faith! We are living in the days of Noah and Lot. We are in the last days.

6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer GRIEF in  all kinds of trials.

If you believe this word, we can rejoice! We can sing aloud! We can even dance as we give our Father praise!

This is one reason why you are going through such trials. Just one reason, though there are many reasons. Those words say: IN ALL kinds of trials. You are never alone when you go through a trial. There are always some who are going through worse trials than what you are going through. Look around.

Can you place your trust in God?

7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Here it is! So that your faith is Genuine! Your faith will stand under pressure because it is worth more than gold and refined by fire! What do you do? You will praise God and continue to give Him all the glory and honor when you walk through the furnace of affliction! Your face will be as flint, and you will not be moved!

8 Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,

We believe! We haven’t seen Jesus, but we love Him! Even now, we still love Him! We believe in Him! We cannot describe our joyful hearts that His Holy Spirit has given to us. We belong to our Father! We are His! We are Children of the Resurrection!

9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls..

During our sufferings, the trials and testing’s of our hearts; we are receiving the end results of OUR FAITH!! “The salvation of your souls!”  The end result of your faith!

All our tests and trials are a sure transformation of our souls into the likeness of Jesus Christ!

The end finality or result of your faith= the salvation of your souls.

Remember when Jesus went out into the wilderness for His faith to be tested? He fought the enemy with the word! In these modern times, we go through the same thing today. Remember Job, who was sitting upon a heap of ashes and had everything taken from him? His children, livestock, wife, home; literally all that he had was taken from him. He was suffering bodily, mentally and miserable. His faith was tested too. Of course, God knows your heart much better than you know it. He wants you to see where your heart is when you are placed in a trial. He will not abandon you when you go through your trial. He teaches us when we go through trials.

I don’t like the words, “long suffering.” No one is exempt in the Body of Christ. If you love Jesus, you will go through persecution. We are transformed in Christ when we go through what I call, our “customized trials.” Our experiences are our teachers. We either become embittered or better. I sometimes think of Joni Eareckson Tada. She has been in a wheelchair since she was 17, battled depression on and off and had to wrestle all the things in her life that being a quadriplegic brings.  She once said, “I always look for someone who has it worse than me, and I find it.” She looked online as she saw a poorly ragged starving man in Calcutta who couldn’t move any of his limbs, resting on the side of a building. Having no one by his side. Did he wonder if anyone cared or loved him?  Joni has touched countless lives as we have listened to her 15 min. broadcast on the radio or heard her talk at a Billy Graham Crusade. Perhaps you have used her cards that she has painted from her mouth. Our attitude should be:

“If she can do it, so can we!”

 

I remember hearing a preacher on TV talking about long suffering. He asked:

“Has anyone here gone through some hard times out there? No?  

Just wait.

Has life been one big party? Yes?

Just wait.  

Has anyone ever found yourself lost, busted and broke? No?

Just wait.

Never been sick? No?

Just wait.

Never had any problems with mortgage or a car payment. No?

Just wait.

Always had a promotion and a good job?

He said, “Just wait! You just wait.”

He wasn’t being negative but only speaking the truth. The man that spoke, was warning you and wanting you to be prepared, not astonished. Life can be a bowl of cherries for a little while.

Then, life happens.

My mother used to call earth a testing ground.

Before we are born again, our eyes are not opened spiritually. Nor is living an easy life and having everything given to you. We develop a thankful heart during our trials. It isn’t only the word that teaches us, but God given experiences that we go through teach us the fear of God.  

It seems at times we arrogantly make the wrong decisions so we can learn from them. Every one of us will have to go through some suffering eventually.

We have heard many scholarly answers as to what St. Paul’s thorn was as he asked God to remove it three times, then God answered him:

⁶ Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say, ⁷ or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. ¹⁰ That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2Co. 12:6-10 niv

In the KJV the word torment says “buffet.”

I cannot think of anyone who was more fully equipped to speak God’s word than Paul! He was a Pharisee and trained in the ways of Jewish law. He knew the word. He had the answers, all the answers! He experienced supernatural experiences and aside from being flogged 5 times, 3 times beaten with rods, stoned and dragged out of town to die, being violently hated, in and out of prison, shipwrecked, he went without food and water on and off. I can well imagine most times he was in a physically weakened condition.

In all that he went through, he never gave up! He pressed on! He was determined to finish the race he was given. Was his thorn a possible conceit of all the revelations and knowledge he had been given? Was it the painful memories of the past things he had done “in God’s name” before he had been born again? Either way, Paul received much grace to encourage the faith that had been given to him. He boldly declared, “when he was weak, he was strong.”

I believe that in his constant weakened condition, nothing could come between him and God. Paul went from being self-dependent to totally being God dependent, in a continual way throughout his whole life. I cannot wait to meet him someday,

Perhaps you have not yet experienced God’s life-giving grace and faith to those who ask Him. Maybe you are tired of struggling with all the battles day in and out. You have heard of Jesus Christ, but do you know Him?

Isn’t it time? Perhaps you have been running for too long in the wrong direction? Time never stops for us. Isn’t it time to give it all to God?

Pray with me:

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for doing a work in my heart. I do not understand everything that I read, but I need to be born again. I want to know you, Lord.  I ask that You come into my life. Today I willingly accept Your free gift of salvation by grace in faith. Open my eyes so I will understand Your word. With Your grace and strength, I repent of all my sins. [Name the sins you think of__________.]  Purify my heart with Your Holy Spirit and teach me all your ways. I believe that your son Jesus died upon that cross so I can have forgiveness from my sins. I believe He was resurrected so I will have eternal life. In Jesus name I pray, amen.

If you have prayed this prayer, Congratulations and welcome into the family of believers! Buy a good Bible if you do not have one. They give them out freely at Thrift stores. Find a good Bible believing church and get involved with a small study group so you can grow. Your new sisters and brothers will hold you up in prayer and are always anxious to help you in times of need. When you go through a trial, they will be there to help.