Courage As Trials Keep Coming

Are you right now, today, facing a trial? It seems they come at us from every direction. Right? I mean all we want to do is share coffee with a friend and before we leave the house the phone rings with news that knocks us to our knees. When I take a look around I see so many going through different trials. All facing different seasons in their life. It seems just as one leaves another is waiting.

I have friends who are going through trials. My best friend is still grieving, five years now, the death of her son. Does it ever end? Does it get better or do you learn to live with the pain? Trials seem to gather in clusters and attack just when we think all is calm. In that calmness if we are not cautious we can live in fear of the next one to come. Been there? I know I have been. I lay awake at night thinking of what's coming next. Oh, to live in that fear is not good for us. It isn't living without faith or needing more faith. I have tired of hearing people say, "You need more faith." More faith? It isn't that I don't have faith. It's learning to trust and to be obedient to our Lord. Our walk is such a vast array of growth. It happens throughout our walk, but at different intervals. 

Trials. They come in all different sizes and shapes. They come in all areas of our life. Always when we least expect them. But, really now, are we really ever in a place where we are expecting them? I mean we don't we wake to the sun is shining through our window and speak the words, "Okay, world, whatcha got for me today? Another trial? Send it on its way. I'm ready for a new one." 

But can we prepare? Here in Missouri we have tornadoes. They can come out of nowhere and put fear in the strongest of us. But we have lived here long enough that we can prepare for those storms. We designate areas to find shelter and safety. We gather candles and blankets. We make sure we have the things we need for a power outage. Do we know when it's going to hit? Sometimes the weather can forewarn us, but in the middle of the darkness many have no idea until they hear that roar. But we have done everything we know to do to prepare. 

"We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed> We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies." 2 Corinthians 4:8-10

It breaks my heart to see people hurting in such ways. It can cause us to question everything. We attend church. We read His Word. We serve. We try to make wise decisions. I mean we work hard and love big. Why? After awhile you just aren't sure if you can take another day, another trial, another falter in your steps. We start blaming ourselves. Blaming God. Right? But with the grace of God, with the strength of our Lord, and with a faith that cannot be moved, He will guide us through each one, give light so we can see, and give wisdom for us to know. For the One who gave His hand to make the universe, there is nothing too big for Him to face, and with Him on our side, what do we have to fear? 

Friends, let us learn to lay them down, all of our burdens. Let the tears fall. Open our heart that has been holding it all in, and allow Jesus to take the heaviness we have carried for so long. Allow Him to fill it with us with peace and joy knowing that He is there. There are times we can feel so alone. Like no one else understands. No one knows the depth of our pain. We walk it alone. We live in denial and do everything we can to escape the pain. 

I am learning to trust Him when I don't understand. Sometimes we cannot understand what simply makes no sense at all. So somewhere in there we learn to trust. To know that we know our God is in control of every aspect of our lives. I have learned to open my hands to Him, giving Him everything I have and everything I am. It can be a battle, right? We open our hands to Him, but a few hours pass and we are trying to take it all back. We figure we can fix things, control things, manipulate things to work out how we think it should be. Friends, it's so much bigger than us. He has walked our past, He lives in our today, and He is already in our tomorrow. Why not trust Him? 

In James 1:2-4 it says; "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." I know it is hard when we are facing a trial to have joy. For me is was a struggle to think it was possible, but the Lord brought me through each day with His love, with His grace and it was His strength that helped me to get out of bed, to smile again, to laugh again. Let us know what hope really is. Hope is believing in God when things make no sense at all, when the end is not in sight, knowing He has a purpose and plan and I am in His hands and there are no better hands to be in. Let us experience all He has for us. It is through that experience that we will see our Lord make things possible that we thought impossible. 

"Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see." Hebrews 11:1

I didn't always turn to Christ when my trials came. I thought I could handle it all on my own, but He quickly showed me when I humble myself, when I understand that in my weakness He will fill me with His strength. It is such a mighty strength to overcome what we cannot see an end to. See, He is there and He is going to move in me, He is going to show me something through this trial. We don't alway see what He is doing at first, sometimes it takes years before He shows us, but He is also working in others. 

Our lives all intertwine with one another, for we are His children. When one is touched by a tragedy, a trial, there are many in the picture that we cannot see but God places them there right when we need them. In His perfect time when too need us. For what we are going through there are also others feeling the same pain, and as we learn from our trials, we can show others the grace of God and what happens when we place our faith in Him with all we have. 

"So, we don't look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever." 2 Corinthians 5:18

Trials are outward circumstances, sufferings, and troubles encountered by all believers. Just because we are believers in Christ doesn't mean we will have lives without trials. It is through those trials, if we are seeking Jesus, that we really see His actions in our lives. The time will come where it is evident that He has been at work in us, around us, and through us. As we go through trials God is refining us just as the refining of gold brings out the real beauty. He is molding us for something far greater. If we lose ourselves in the trial we are missing out on what He wants us to gain. 

In the midst of our trials look for the beauty. Where is our focus? Is it encapsulated by the circumstance? For us, this is usually where our thoughts travel. We get stuck here in the midst of the ugly. But, what happens if we focus on Him? What happens when we realize our circumstances change moment to moment. God is always moving. He is always making a way. We may not understand. We may not see clearly in what the future can be. But HE can! In His holiness there is nothing that comes from Him that is not holy. Look up and know God is there, He hasn't left and when you are hurting the most is when He is going to show up and behold a beauty in you, a feeling of freedom and through that freedom comes joy. 

Some of us have lost children, some have strained relationships with our children and family, some have lost loved ones, some are fighting for their lives, some feel as though their lives are falling apart. Sometimes the hurt is so great you think you can't go on. On our own we wouldn't be able to. But through Him we can. He is in our yesterday, our today, and our tomorrow. He is going to show you how great His love is, it is in those clouds that we see the rainbow, the beauty of God, and no matter what you are facing, He is there for you. Don't allow the fear to define you. Let go of the fear and let God's strength set you free, for His freedom will take you places you never thought you would be. 

For me, this I know; There have been times in my life where I was facing trials and I  didn't think I would make it through. I thought my life was over, but God showed me what life is when I take His hand and trust in Him, to hear Him say to me,"Be still my daughter", gives me faith, gives me hope and strengthens my belief in Him.

When we are facing a trial we always think it can never be worse and it will never get better. We ponder how we will ever survive the anguish, the turmoil, the sheer force of agony that is gut wrenching. But friends, there comes that day when that trial is passing. We can see where He has stepped in and moved on our behalf. That valley is long, but He is there to walk it with us. 

What we often struggle with is defining peace. It isn't something that comes when all is quiet. Peace comes in the midst of the fury, of the forces of the wind, just when the water is about to take us under, there it is. We call out to Jesus and peace is there to comfort us. It is a knowing that no matter how awful things are right now, we are not alone. His peace brings us through to the other side. 

Through our trials we grow stronger. We grow wiser. We find grace and mercy. We understand patience and forgiveness. What we have learned we will soon treasure and carry with us for the next trial. 

Oh, if we could just learn to be transparent. To share our trials instead of wanting the world to think our lives perfect. If we could all be honest we could learn such valuable lessons. We all face them, right? How much different our lives would be to have support and encouragement from others who have faced similar trials. Too often we hide in them, buried deep in an aloneness because we think others couldn't possibly understand. Our circumstances do not define us. We are simply people trying to figure it all out and move forward each day doing the best we can. 

If we haven't faced trials by now, we will. Life as a Christian doesn't make us exempt. Living with Christ changes everything. I asked earlier if we can ever be prepared for our trials. Is that even possible? We prepare by seeking Jesus. We read the Word. We spend time in prayer. We study and ponder. With every question we have for Him we must give an ear to listen. This can be one of the hardest lessons we learn. To be still and quiet. He is always teaching us. 

When we seek Jesus He will forever show Himself to us. He will make Himself known if we will simply look to Him with a no matter what kind of faith. When I make room for Jesus my entire thought process changes. I'm focused on Him. Doing so reassures me that no matter what will happen in the day He is present and He isn't leaving me. He will see me through. He's bigger than any trial, an Goliath we face on this earth. In Him we will overcome. 

"When I am afraid, I put my trust in You. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me?

Psalm 56:3-4

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." 

2 Timothy 1:7