Difficulty
And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
I remember when I first accepted Jesus as my personal savior, I thought that everything was going to be perfect! I believed that because I had Jesus, I would not have any problems. All I had to do was talk to Him and He would take care of everything. I missed the part about the suffering, trials, and tribulations as a believer. I did not realize there was a work God had to do in me to get me ready to serve Him.
My husband and I took a walk around a beautiful neighborhood. As we walked around the lake, we saw a young lady across the street taking a picture of her dog. We waved at her, and she waved back and said “Hello!”. It was clear she wanted to talk, so we walked across the street to chat.
She told us a bit about herself and how she was headed back to college soon. She said that she had packed everything up in her car so it would be ready to go and spent some special quite time in the spirit, which gave her a good, pure feeling inside. But after that time in the spirit, she walked outside to see that someone had broken into her car.
She asked how so much evil could have come to her after being in such a pure place. I did not know if she was a believer or not, but I told her that when we decide to do good, evil is always present to discourage us and to turn our hearts back to a place of sin.
In those moments of difficulty God has not left us. He is working things out in our heart so we can be steadfast, immovable, and always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord our labor is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:57-58). God has given us the Bible with all the testimonies of those who have come before us to remind us that testing and trials are a part of the journey. He promises that He will be with us in the midst of everything and will never leave us to deal with life’s difficulties on our own.
“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him” (James 1:12).
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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