September 8th

SEPTEMBER 8th

God allows trials to strengthen and shape us and test our faith. But He never leaves us, He is with us in the trials.

1 Peter 1:6-7 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 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.

1 Peter 4:12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.

Psalm 126:5-6 Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy. Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them.

John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

God has a plan and circumstances don’t block His plan.

When we face trials, we are better prepared for other trials that lay ahead of us.

You were designed to handle stress, your brain was designed to get better at handling stress every time you face it. But you have to remember to stop and rest and trust Him.

Trust His strength, His will, His plan and His timing.

God may not give us explanations but He always gives us Himself.

James 4:8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you…

He ALWAYS has our best interest at heart, He is preparing us for what is ahead.

Isaiah 55:8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

So today if we face tough things, let’s turn our eyes and heart to Jesus and ask Him what good this hard thing will accomplish. Let’s ask Him to help us grow from it and reap everything from it that we can. Everything has a purpose, even the things that we cause ourselves. And those caused by others. I have heard this great saying at CR many times: No hurt is wasted.

How true that is, God knows ahead of time everything that we will face in this broken world, but rather than it going to waste, He uses it all for our good.

Romans 5:1-5 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoiced in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

I know, we want God to shield us from all trouble, but that will not make our faith legs strong. Hard times of persecution are coming as the world continues in its self-destruction and we have to know how to handle hard times so that we are able to continue to stand in our faith. So as hard as it is, let us be thankful to the Lord that He cares enough to prepare us instead of babying us.

Lord thank you for loving me enough to allow me to go through hard things so that I can learn how to trust you. Help me to face my trials with you rather than on my own. Make me strong please. Help me learn to feel your presence in the valley, in the storm, in the trial. Thank you for your perfect love, help me to walk in it today.

Psalm 32:8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.