“There is no pit so deep, that God's love is not deeper still.” ~ Corrie Ten Boom
“If God has shown us bad times ahead, it's enough for me that He knows
about them. That's why He sometimes shows us things, you know - to tell
us that this too is in His hands.”~ Corrie Ten Boom
“Our anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, but only empties today of its strength” ~ Charles Spurgeon
“Trials teach us what we are; they dig up the soil,
and let us see what we are made of; they just turn up some of the ill
weeds on to the surface.” ~ Charles Spurgeon
Some
people feel guilty about their anxieties and regard them as a defect of
their faith, but they are afflictions not sins. Like all afflictions,
they are, if we can so take them, our share in the passion of Christ. ~
C.S. Lewis
“God allows us to experience the low points
of life in order to teach us lessons that we could learn in no other
way.”~ C.S. Lewis
“When we lose one blessing, another is often most unexpectedly given in its place.”~ C.S. Lewis
Thursday, January 10, 2013
I Will Rejoice, I Will Declare, God is my Victory and He is Here...
It is quite amazing how excited you can be for something and within the space of just a few minutes your whole attitude changes. The past few weeks are a prime example.
Christmas was perfect. We spent a couple of days with Stephen's family and a couple with mine. We were able to see all our family (including my nieces and nephew!). And, then, just a few days following the holiday, we learned of the death of a fellow Boyce College student through a horrible car accident. A couple of days after that, I get a call for a job interview through H&R Block. The next day I find I have the job. Earlier this week we find out Stephen is working a lot less hours than normal next week. Yesterday, I hear that training for my job is this Saturday. Within the hour, I get another call saying that my background check didn't go through so I can't be hired (for now).
With all these events it's hard to even think about getting excited for the good things because you feel that just as soon as you get excited, something happens and everything goes dark. It's almost a curse to get joyful.
And then, you read passages like Philippians 4 (I know, I wrote on it just a month ago, but it's just SO good and So timely!) where it says to rejoice....always. All the time. Not just when you land a job or have a good Christmas. But also when a good friend dies or when you lose( or almost lose) a job. Rejoice that the friend was a believer and is now praising God an worshiping Him - at His feet - for all eternity! Rejoice that there is time to do some needed things like cleaning or spending time with God and reading Scripture.
And, I have to admit, usually my first thought in reading this passage is how ridiculous that statement sounds. I mean, rejoicing at losing a job? Why in the world would you rejoice in that? But, you know, God has a reason for everything. For EVERYTHING. Not just the good, but the bad as well. He NEVER gives you anything you can't handle. On top of all that, EVERY event God brings you, He will get you out. The pain is not going to last forever. God is God....He is bigger than any and every trial. If anything, that's something to rejoice about! In every circumstance there is a lesson. I was talking to my mother-in-law a little while ago and she said when you get older almost everything you went through - good or bad- you will look back on and think what a good time that was. Because, through every circumstance - as a true believer - you will learn to rely and trust in God more. Your relationship with Him will be strengthened. Your knowledge of Scripture will be better as you read and meditate on it.
In the end, in every bad circumstance, it will be extremely difficult to see the good and rejoice in it. You may cry and wallow in your misery for a little while. And, that's okay. I certainly have the past few weeks. And, I most likely will again. But, as long as you remember that God is in your circumstance and He will carry you through it, that's okay.
To close, I want to share one of my favorite songs as well as some of my favorite Scripture passages. In another post, I will share some of my favorite quotes. I will also post them on my "Favorite Quotes" tab. (:
Desert Song by Hillsong United:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MCwKdai51o
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. ~ James 1: 2-4
1 Peter 1
"This is what the past is for! Every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our lives is the perfect preparation for the future that only He can see." ~ Corrie Ten Boom
Christmas was perfect. We spent a couple of days with Stephen's family and a couple with mine. We were able to see all our family (including my nieces and nephew!). And, then, just a few days following the holiday, we learned of the death of a fellow Boyce College student through a horrible car accident. A couple of days after that, I get a call for a job interview through H&R Block. The next day I find I have the job. Earlier this week we find out Stephen is working a lot less hours than normal next week. Yesterday, I hear that training for my job is this Saturday. Within the hour, I get another call saying that my background check didn't go through so I can't be hired (for now).
With all these events it's hard to even think about getting excited for the good things because you feel that just as soon as you get excited, something happens and everything goes dark. It's almost a curse to get joyful.
And then, you read passages like Philippians 4 (I know, I wrote on it just a month ago, but it's just SO good and So timely!) where it says to rejoice....always. All the time. Not just when you land a job or have a good Christmas. But also when a good friend dies or when you lose( or almost lose) a job. Rejoice that the friend was a believer and is now praising God an worshiping Him - at His feet - for all eternity! Rejoice that there is time to do some needed things like cleaning or spending time with God and reading Scripture.
And, I have to admit, usually my first thought in reading this passage is how ridiculous that statement sounds. I mean, rejoicing at losing a job? Why in the world would you rejoice in that? But, you know, God has a reason for everything. For EVERYTHING. Not just the good, but the bad as well. He NEVER gives you anything you can't handle. On top of all that, EVERY event God brings you, He will get you out. The pain is not going to last forever. God is God....He is bigger than any and every trial. If anything, that's something to rejoice about! In every circumstance there is a lesson. I was talking to my mother-in-law a little while ago and she said when you get older almost everything you went through - good or bad- you will look back on and think what a good time that was. Because, through every circumstance - as a true believer - you will learn to rely and trust in God more. Your relationship with Him will be strengthened. Your knowledge of Scripture will be better as you read and meditate on it.
In the end, in every bad circumstance, it will be extremely difficult to see the good and rejoice in it. You may cry and wallow in your misery for a little while. And, that's okay. I certainly have the past few weeks. And, I most likely will again. But, as long as you remember that God is in your circumstance and He will carry you through it, that's okay.
To close, I want to share one of my favorite songs as well as some of my favorite Scripture passages. In another post, I will share some of my favorite quotes. I will also post them on my "Favorite Quotes" tab. (:
Desert Song by Hillsong United:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MCwKdai51o
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. ~ James 1: 2-4
1 Peter 1
"This is what the past is for! Every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our lives is the perfect preparation for the future that only He can see." ~ Corrie Ten Boom
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