The actual fact, however, is that the real experience is quite contrary. It is only when we come to trust God that we meet the trials and difficulties. (Google image, Pathway strewn with flowers)
The story of the Bible is one of alternate trial and triumph in the case of every one of the cloud of witnesses from Abel down to the latest martyr.
Our insufficiencies and Failures
Hard places are valuable in revealing to us ourselves, and showing us our insufficiencies and failures. They are God's great blasting processes in the work of spiritual excavation, and must precede the higher work of building up the life and character.
We never know what graces and qualities we possess until the test comes, and then the faith and courage that glowed with such a flame in the moment of enthusiasm and inspiration finds its true level, and the soul is thrown back in its nothingness and helplessness upon Christ alone to find in Him its all in all.
This is why the Lord still tries you to convince you thoroughly that your estimate of your own strength is utterly false and exaggerated, and to bring you to that place where it will be truly, "Not I, but Christ liveth in me" (Gal. 2:29).
God's All-sufficiency
Hard places help us next to know the resources of God. It is only under difficult circumstances that we know His all-sufficiency. Israel must first stand still and next behold the salvation of God.
When they ceased from their acting, God revealed His power. And so He tells them that the reason He led them through the wilderness and exposed them to a situation where there were no natural supplies of any kind—was to teach them that He was adequate for every need, and that, "man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord" (Deu. 8:3).
God can only become real to us up to the measure of our actual needs, and every difficult situation is just a vessel for him to fill, and an occasion for Him to show Himself in His infinite wisdom, power and grace.
Confidence in God
Trial is the fruitful soil of trust. Difficulties are the divine incentives which demand and develop our confidence in the divine faithfulness and love. It is so easy for us to lean upon the things that we can see and feel that it is an entirely new experience focus to stand alone and walk with the unseen God as Peter walked upon the sea.
But it is the lesson we must learn if we are ever to dwell in the eternal realm, and faith shall be our only sense and God shall be our All in all.
Prayer, Love, Patience and Courage
Hard places teach us to pray and constrain us to be much alone with God. They drove Jacob to his knees at the fords of Jabbok (Gen. 32:22-32). They taught David to find "the secret place of the Most High" (Psa. 91:1). They made the life of Paul one of ceaseless dependence upon the presence of his Lord, and they have inspired as well as sustained the divine communion which most of us have learned to prove as the supreme resource and solution of our lives.
Our most spiritual seasons and the times that have brought God most near have been times of which we could say "Thou hast known my soul in adversities" (Psa. 31:7).
Hard places teach us to love. When God wants to soften and refine our spirit and answer our prayers for a baptism of patience and love, He has to let the discipline of ill treatment, injustice and often the severest wrong compel us to go to Him for the charity that "beareth all things," that "endureth all things."
Hard places teach us patience. Patience is the crowning grace of the Christian life, and when it has its perfect work then we become "perfect and entire, wanting nothing: (Jas. 1:4).
Hard places teach us courage. They take away the fear of suffering, the dread of pain, and enable us to put on His strength and courage, and rise above the power of fear until we welcome the conflict, and stand with scars of the conflict and victory as good soldiers of Christ.
Object Lessons of God's Grace and Power
Hard places make us patterns and object lessons for the help of others and for the glory of God, showing to the world what Christ can do for His children, and what Christ-lives may accomplish where others fail.
Hard places fit us to help others by the lessons we have learned in our own experience. The callous and immature heart is little qualified to comfort, counsel and bless a suffering world. God has to burn in us first what we are to give out to our fellows.
Hard places make Christ real, just as real as the trouble is. They are the heavenly stamps by which God's messages and God's communications of grace and blessing are embossed and made to stand out in relief from our lives.
So God cuts and burns His messages into human lives until Christ becomes to us real as the tears we have shed, the fears under which we have trembled, the sorrows that were ready to overwhelm us, and the difficulties which rose like mountains before us—so that the sweetest memories of our lives are the hard places which have become stepping stones and monuments of divine and heavenly things.
Hard places win for us eternal crowns. They become occasions for victory and reward, the soldier of Christ is winning a record and a crown which will never pass away.
Hard Places In The Way Of Faith by A. B. Simpson. HERALD OF HIS COMING magazine, selected portions, February 2019, Vol. 78 No 2 (926)
Let's pray-
"Dear Lord, I spend far too much time worrying about things I cannot control. But today I’m choosing to trust You with all of it. I put all my tomorrows in your hands, and I trust You’ll give me the strength needed when those tomorrows come. For now, let’s You and I walk through today, together. Thank You for your patience and presence. In Jesus’ Name, Amen."
Today's special video:
Very moving and inspirational! Join me in doing this!
Today's Bible verses-
2 Cor. 1:3–4 (NKJV)"Blessed be the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father
of mercies and God of all comfort, (v. 4)who
comforts in all our tribulation, that we may
be able to comfort those who are in any trouble,
with the comfort with which we ourselves are
comforted by God."
Matthew 6:34, (ESV) "Therefore, do not be anxious
about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for
itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."
James 1:5 (NIV) "If any of you lacks wisdom,
you should ask God, who gives generously to all
without finding fault, and it will be given to you.
Did you know?
~ The goal of Scripture is to bring us into a relationship with God and into His likeness.
~ The freedom we have as God's children is not to do whatever we want, but instead, it is the ability to do what is right.
Today's quotes-
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| Battle Ready By Kelly Balarie |
~ Nancy Demary- When you decide to come to Christ and surrender your life to Him, you will face persecution (2 Timothy 3:12). It takes on various forms and all of us who have made this choice soon experience the consequences of choosing the Kingdom of God over others. Our life changes from what we have known and trusted in; you become an alien of sorts, someone just passing through (Hebrews 11:13) and the world no longer has a grip upon you. Those around you may not like this. Jesus said,
“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. (v. 24) For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. (v. 25) For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? (v. 26) For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.” (Luke 9:23-26)
(Quote taken from Dreamer!)
Today's popular post-
Lisa Buffaloe: "There are days the journey is difficult and the trials are many. If you are going through hardships, I’ve placed these verses to give you hope.
Would you be willing to read and make them personal? God’s word is for you . . . "
Would you be willing to read and make them personal? God’s word is for you . . . "
Upcoming posts-
#37 The Greatest Force on Earth
14th- Tuesday's post by Samuel Chadwick#38 An Energized Intercessor
16th- Thursday's post by Samuel Chadwick
The Cost of Sanctification
18th- Saturday's post by Oswald Chambers
#39 Praying and the Commonplace
21st- Tuesday's post by Samuel Chambers
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| Suffolk horse |
Helpful ways the Lord helped me in my marriage
Thank you for this post, Jean. It is so true. It's in the hard places that we discover God's strength and grace. It's in the hard places that we learn dependence on him and he develops in us a trusting, obedient and compassionate heart.
ReplyDeleteIf it were not for the "hard places" in our walk with the Lord, how would we learn to lean on Him and to trust His guidance?
ReplyDelete