Aloha Dearest Family,
In
John 10:10 Jesus Christ states the reason why he came,
"The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."
Jesus Christ came to make the more abundant life available
to you and me. However, at times in our lives, we might not be seeing this more
than abundant life that he came to give us. In fact, sometimes life just seems
downright hard. I thought that when we got born-again, life was supposed to get
easier.
At
times of hardships, some may start to think thoughts like, "Where is
God?" or "Maybe God is angry with me" or even "Maybe I'm
going through this because of some sin that I have committed." And a lot
of us have been taught that God is giving them a trial to test their faith.
What is the truth of the matter?
Much
of the trouble is perhaps wrong expectations. It would help to have the proper
expectations so that we are not blind-sided when something distressing happens
.For example, 1) we should expect
nothing but good and blessing from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 2) We should expect nothing but misery
and destruction from the devil. So, when something happens we should not be
surprised because our expectations are correct. The truth of the matter is that
the "easy life" was never promised by God. In fact, the Word declares
that we will absolutely face trials and tribulations. When trials and
temptations occur in our lives we shouldn't be surprised. As the Word of says,
"Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you." (II Peter 4:12)
The
first thing we need to understand is that trials are "common to all
men" (and women too). "There
hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man:..." (I
Corinthians 10:13a) Trials happen to all people, Christian and non-Christian
alike. Because of the evil that is in the world and the influences of the
devil, troubles will come. (Also the choices that we make could bring trouble
to our lives as well, but that is another sharing).
The
second thing we need to understand is that trials and temptations are NEVER from God. The teaching that God
gives us trials and temptations to help strengthen us is a concept not taught
in the Bible. Consider the following verse from James,
"Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempts he any man:" (James 1:13)
The devil is the one who tempts us with evil.
The Bible even calls him "the tempter" (Matthew 4:3). The devil does
not want you to walk with God. He is the one who wants you to stumble and fall
in life. Let's look at the first part of our very first scripture,
"The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.."
The thief referred to here is
the devil and all he wants to do is to steal, kill and destroy. All the
troubles in the world and through people's lives are a product on his
influences. The devil's goal is to turn you away from the true God. So many
times people blame God Almighty for tragedy in their lives because of wrong
teaching. The teaching that God is in control of everything that happens is not
biblical and has caused millions of Christians to walk away from God. This is
what the devil wants; to turn people away from God and get us to doubt His
goodness. (In the recent Christian movie The War Room, the film makes a
clear point of teaching us that the devil is the real enemy in our lives).
The
devil is the one who brings trials into our lives, but God takes these very
trials that the devil gives us and uses them as opportunities for us to trust
and believe Him. What Satan puts in our path as obstacles, God uses them to our
benefit. God knows that we will experience trouble at times in our lives and He
has given us the keys to victory in His Word. The biggest key is — He wants to help us!
- "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." (Psalm 46:1"
-"He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him." (Psalm 91:15)
-"There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." (I Corinthians 10:13)
God has
provided a way to help us patiently endure troubles and temptations. We need to
give our troubles to God and He will strengthen us and help us (Isaiah 41:10).
Remember that man was never meant to "go it alone" through life. We
were designed to be dependent upon God for everything.
There
are two responses to trials. Trials can either push us away from God (because
of wrong teaching), or trials can be a way for us to draw even closer to God.
As stated ealier, God does not give us trials in our life. The devil does. But
God uses these trials as a "proving ground" for us to grow in our
trust in Him.
"My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing (proving) of your faith produces patience (patient endurance)." (James 1:1 and 2)
When we turn to God and patiently
endure during trials, we will grow spiritually and learn how to persevere.
"Not only so, but we also glory (boast) in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance." (Romans 5:4 NIV) We learn how to persevere because we have learned how to trust God through our sufferings.
Plus,
an added bonus when we endure through trials, is that we will one day be rewarded
for our steadfastness.
"Blessed is the man that endures temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him." (James 1:12)
Trials and temptations will come to us all,
but as we look to God for help during these times we will be able to patiently
endure through them, which will lead us to greater maturity and future rewards.
God wants to help us for He is our refuge and strength.
Love Always, Ray
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