Greetings and happy Monday Lightbrights! I hope you had a blessed weekend and have been enjoying this series so far.
We have just 1 more topic to cover on tomorrow to close out the series.
Today's topic is one meant to give you encouragement and hopefully help you to remain joyful in the midst of whatever season and trial you are in.
The bible gives us great words of wisdom and encouragement when it talks about trials and tribulations we all will face in this life.
My favorite verse in regards to this is James 1:2-3 which says "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance." Did you catch that? We are actually told to be joyful when our faith is being tested. Joy is the opposite of what a person usually feels when their world is turned upside down and they are facing some type of adversity in their life. But even in that verse, the promise is at the end of it. We're told that the testing will produce perseverance in us- enabling us to stand and even produce fruit in our lives.
I read something from the great Christian author Charles Spurgeon, he said, our testing is orchestrated just for us, meaning God knew what to give us and what to allow us to go thru at the proper time. What you are able to stand today, would likely have buckled you in times past. That in itself speaks to the character of God. We are strengthened and we grow thru the testing of our faith!
Romans 8:38-39 reads, "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Nothing the believer goes thru will separate us from the love of God. He allows it because the opposite is what will take place- we will grow closer to God. What is meant to kill us by the enemy only makes us stronger in Christ Jesus, when we yield to the work of the Holy Spirit in our life-even when, or should I say especially when-- we are going thru trials.
When we put out faith in Jesus, we are promised in the word to not be put to shame per Romans 5:5, "And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us."
I would encourage anyone who feels like God has not kept His promise to comfort us in times of trial, to read what the Psalmist King David penned in his many Psalms about God's divine protection and providence. David was constantly being harassed by enemies and foes, some even close to him, who were seeking to take his life. But Psalm after Psalm we see David's hope in God and not himself. Psalm 20:7 says, "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God."
In Psalms 121 David says he will lift up his eyes to the hills, knowing that the God who made the hills, even the heaven and the earth was his help. He stated in Psalm 62 that his soul found rest in God from whence his salvation comes, and also in Psalms 16 he said he would keep his eyes on the Lord and that he would not be shaken.
Are you and I like David? Do we rest at night believing God sees and knows our every situation? OR do we toss and turn, have anxiety and anxiousness because we think God is far away and unconcerned with our issues?
If you look to the world or others, even those who call themselves Christians and/or friends, you may sometimes find yourself pulled in a direction of unbelief, worry, whining and self pity.
Instead remind yourself of the promises God has already kept. How He already made ways and was with you when you were going thru last year, and that He will be with you this year.
When you cant find the words or your thoughts are jumbled and unfocused, ask the Holy Spirit to intervene and to remind you of the goodness of God. It's a reason the Holy Spirit is called the Comforter. He is a real Person. He is not an "it" or a "force". He is the 3rd person in the the Trinity. He has a will and can be grieved. He is the indwelling and sealing of every believer in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ.
When in trials, we must rely on Him and know the promises of God to sustain us.
I end this blog with a challenge today.
I challenge you every time the whispers of the enemy enter your mind to tell you that you are alone or forgotten or to accuse you and convince you that God has left you this time, that you fire back with the word of God and speak life into your situation.
Pray and meditate on the goodness and promises of God.
Pick up your bible and read all of His promises that He made to every believer.
Be empowered thru your faith and the Holy Spirit.
Rest well tonight, knowing that God is a promise keeper and He never fails!
See you tomorrow for the last blog in this series- The Promise of Reward
Until next time,
Keep Shining
Kee Isadore
It's so funny because I thought of something while reading this blog...you know how preachers always say "tell your neighbor"? This can sometimes get so annoying and can be distracting when you are trying to listen during a sermon and comprehend what is being said. Sometimes you don't even have a chance to digest whether you agree in the spirit or not with what they said before you have to "slap yo neighbor" (LOL).... While it can be overused (I mean a LOT) it does accomplish the same thing you're writing about here. Unlike falliable man, we KNOW we can agree with the promises and the word of God! Our challenges and trials often want us to go on mute.…