Ephesians 1:13-14
In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
Redemption of the purchased possession. You, if you have accepted Christ Jesus as you savior, are the purchased possession. Redemption is when God takes you to His home. Think of a receipt for something that you bought. Jesus bought you. He paid with His life, purchasing you with His blood. Once you believe that, you are His possession.
The Holy Spirit He places in you at the time of purchase is the guarantee of your inheritance into God's kingdom. The Holy Spirit is the everlasting glue on us, it seals us. Jesus bought us as-is. He knew exactly what we were and bought us just as we were. This everlasting glue, the Holy Spirit, doesn't ever go away. It can't be taken off by anyone or anything. This guarantees our inheritance into the kingdom of God.
Why did God purchase us? He purchased us to the praise of His glory. We are to praise His glory. You want purpose for your life? Praise Him. That is your purpose. Find reason to praise Him in all you do and all that happens to you. God will use all things for your good. That's not to say that all things are good, but that He will turn even the bad into something to be used for your good, and for His glory. If something happens that the enemy intended for bad, God will use it for your good. Therein lies your reason for praise.
What are you doing when you give God glory? You're praising Him. You're boasting of His work in your life, and in the lives of others. You're giving all credit to Him for His goodness and glory.
Give God glory and all praise, for since the moment of your purchased life He has sealed and guaranteed your everlasting home with Him. This promise should embolden us to praise Him all the louder. For if God is for us, who can stand against us?! Yes! To GOD be all the glory!
19 November 2013
18 November 2013
The All-Day Praise
Once again I have found myself going through struggles in life. The past few months have been very challenging. I have done the best I can to cling to the Lord throughout all of the chaos. I praise God that things are finally starting to get better. It is through praise that I have found much of my relief.
The battles our family has faced recently has all been centered on family relationship, personal trust in God, giving in to temptations, medical concerns, and life situation concerns. No aspect of our family has been untouched by some sort of trial. All of it has taken a tremendous toll upon my mind, emotions, and spirit. I had to change medications just to help get my mind to attempt to focus on what desperately needed my attention.
Do you know what I learned throughout all of this? That no matter what, no matter what happens in life, I MUST praise the Lord God. 1 Chronicles 23:30 says: "And to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord, and likewise at even". We are to praise God in the morning, EVERY morning. We are to praise Him in the evening, EVERY evening.
Psalm 27:6 And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the Lord
Even when you find yourself completely surrounded by troubles, you are to praise God. You are to SING praises to the Lord. So, when I felt overwhelmed, when it seemed like my world was crashing around me, I started singing praises. I literally started singing the first praise songs that came to mind. And I kept singing. Do you know when you are focused on trying to remember the next verse in a song of praise to the Lord, you can't think of anything else? God is good. And He is unchanging...meaning He is good ALL of the time.
Psalm 28:7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heat greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise
Clinging to God is what will give us strength. In our weakness His strength is magnified. When it is impossible for us to make it, God is glorified when the impossible happens. Knowing our strength comes from Him alone should be enough to praise Him. My goodness, but if we would simply continue to be in awe that He gave everything for our salvation, we should be singing continuously our praises to Him! Our failing heart is helped because we entrust it to Him. How can we not sing Him praises when He unfailingly lifts us back up?!
Psalm 100:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
Be thankful to God, through everything. Not just good and easy times should we be praising His goodness, but also in the trials and hardships. It is easy to praise how good God is when things are going well. But can you praise Him when you are suffering? Your situation has changed, not God. He is worthy of your praise all day, everyday.
Next time you find yourself struggling, I challenge you to start singing praises to His name. Keep singing until your heart has been lifted back up. God is ever faithful. Keep your faith in Him. Wait on the Lord. Your suffering is but for a time. No matter how long you suffer, He is to be praised. No matter how long you suffer, it is nothing compared to the eternity you can spend in His presence. Praise Him for He has chosen you to glorify His name.
Psalm 34:1 I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Psalm 104:33 I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being
The battles our family has faced recently has all been centered on family relationship, personal trust in God, giving in to temptations, medical concerns, and life situation concerns. No aspect of our family has been untouched by some sort of trial. All of it has taken a tremendous toll upon my mind, emotions, and spirit. I had to change medications just to help get my mind to attempt to focus on what desperately needed my attention.
Do you know what I learned throughout all of this? That no matter what, no matter what happens in life, I MUST praise the Lord God. 1 Chronicles 23:30 says: "And to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord, and likewise at even". We are to praise God in the morning, EVERY morning. We are to praise Him in the evening, EVERY evening.
Psalm 27:6 And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the Lord
Even when you find yourself completely surrounded by troubles, you are to praise God. You are to SING praises to the Lord. So, when I felt overwhelmed, when it seemed like my world was crashing around me, I started singing praises. I literally started singing the first praise songs that came to mind. And I kept singing. Do you know when you are focused on trying to remember the next verse in a song of praise to the Lord, you can't think of anything else? God is good. And He is unchanging...meaning He is good ALL of the time.
Psalm 28:7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heat greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise
Clinging to God is what will give us strength. In our weakness His strength is magnified. When it is impossible for us to make it, God is glorified when the impossible happens. Knowing our strength comes from Him alone should be enough to praise Him. My goodness, but if we would simply continue to be in awe that He gave everything for our salvation, we should be singing continuously our praises to Him! Our failing heart is helped because we entrust it to Him. How can we not sing Him praises when He unfailingly lifts us back up?!
Psalm 100:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
Be thankful to God, through everything. Not just good and easy times should we be praising His goodness, but also in the trials and hardships. It is easy to praise how good God is when things are going well. But can you praise Him when you are suffering? Your situation has changed, not God. He is worthy of your praise all day, everyday.
Next time you find yourself struggling, I challenge you to start singing praises to His name. Keep singing until your heart has been lifted back up. God is ever faithful. Keep your faith in Him. Wait on the Lord. Your suffering is but for a time. No matter how long you suffer, He is to be praised. No matter how long you suffer, it is nothing compared to the eternity you can spend in His presence. Praise Him for He has chosen you to glorify His name.
Psalm 34:1 I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Psalm 104:33 I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being
13 August 2013
Remember
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. - Philippians 4:8
This was the first thing I read today during my morning devotional. As I continued into my quiet time I began reading 2 Peter.
His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you and entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Therefore I intend to always remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder, since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things. - 2 Peter 1:3-15
I have had much unrest in my spirit lately. I have been fighting a battle that has added great stress in my mind and my spirit. This has gone on long enough that it is affecting my body. I kept crying out to God to help me. I found myself in a depression again, my thoughts circling things of pain and a perspective that cannot see past the pain.
I talked to God a long while this morning before starting my reading. I told Him everything that was heavy on my mind. Those things which continue to cause me pain. Notice the recurrence of us needing to be "reminded" of things in the two passages I've shared? Interesting how when I seek God's help when my mind is circling negative things that He shows me - He reminds me - that my thoughts should not be circling those things at all. There is a difference between remembering something that has happened and reminding yourself of it.
Things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, praise worthy, are what we are supposed to "think on". When you think on something it is more than just remembering. Thinking on something means we keep it in our mind longer than just a fleeting thought. Can't say that my mind was circling any of those things.
Peter said: His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God's divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness. It's through the knowledge found in Jesus that we are granted the things that pertain to life and godliness. He has granted to us the precious and great promises so we can take part in the divine nature. Our salvation through grace by faith in Christ Jesus is what breaks us free from the bondage of worldly corruption because of sinful desires.
Sinful desires are what bring corruption. Because of the sinful desires and the corruption they bring we must do everything we can to supplement our faith with virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. If we have these things and they are increasing (meaning we have to keep feeding them and growing them) they will keep us from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
If I had been allowing those things to circle my mind instead of allowing the distracting thoughts of negative things I would not have fallen into depression. ...for if you practice these qualities you will never fall...Therefore I intend to always remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. Even though we already may know about these qualities and we may know that we are established in the Truth we have in Christ, it is good to always be reminded of them. We need to keep these things in our mind at all times. If our minds are full of them then there is no room for the negative thoughts. No room for sinful desires, and no room for corruption to grow from those sinful desires.
Bottom line, keep not just our eyes on Jesus but keep our minds on Him. If our minds are on Him, we will see Him in every situation. Alone, I am imperfect. Alone, I am stained with sin and corrupted. But through Jesus I am perfected. Through Jesus I am washed clean, white as snow, without blemish, without corruption. Why did I ever allow distractions to take over and keep my attention?! Jesus is all I need, and all I need be directing my full attention.
Thank you, Father, for reminding me of your grace and to always circle my mind around whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and praise worthy!!
This was the first thing I read today during my morning devotional. As I continued into my quiet time I began reading 2 Peter.
His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you and entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Therefore I intend to always remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder, since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things. - 2 Peter 1:3-15
I have had much unrest in my spirit lately. I have been fighting a battle that has added great stress in my mind and my spirit. This has gone on long enough that it is affecting my body. I kept crying out to God to help me. I found myself in a depression again, my thoughts circling things of pain and a perspective that cannot see past the pain.
I talked to God a long while this morning before starting my reading. I told Him everything that was heavy on my mind. Those things which continue to cause me pain. Notice the recurrence of us needing to be "reminded" of things in the two passages I've shared? Interesting how when I seek God's help when my mind is circling negative things that He shows me - He reminds me - that my thoughts should not be circling those things at all. There is a difference between remembering something that has happened and reminding yourself of it.
Things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, praise worthy, are what we are supposed to "think on". When you think on something it is more than just remembering. Thinking on something means we keep it in our mind longer than just a fleeting thought. Can't say that my mind was circling any of those things.
Peter said: His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God's divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness. It's through the knowledge found in Jesus that we are granted the things that pertain to life and godliness. He has granted to us the precious and great promises so we can take part in the divine nature. Our salvation through grace by faith in Christ Jesus is what breaks us free from the bondage of worldly corruption because of sinful desires.
Sinful desires are what bring corruption. Because of the sinful desires and the corruption they bring we must do everything we can to supplement our faith with virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. If we have these things and they are increasing (meaning we have to keep feeding them and growing them) they will keep us from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
If I had been allowing those things to circle my mind instead of allowing the distracting thoughts of negative things I would not have fallen into depression. ...for if you practice these qualities you will never fall...Therefore I intend to always remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. Even though we already may know about these qualities and we may know that we are established in the Truth we have in Christ, it is good to always be reminded of them. We need to keep these things in our mind at all times. If our minds are full of them then there is no room for the negative thoughts. No room for sinful desires, and no room for corruption to grow from those sinful desires.
Bottom line, keep not just our eyes on Jesus but keep our minds on Him. If our minds are on Him, we will see Him in every situation. Alone, I am imperfect. Alone, I am stained with sin and corrupted. But through Jesus I am perfected. Through Jesus I am washed clean, white as snow, without blemish, without corruption. Why did I ever allow distractions to take over and keep my attention?! Jesus is all I need, and all I need be directing my full attention.
Thank you, Father, for reminding me of your grace and to always circle my mind around whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and praise worthy!!
03 August 2013
A Lonely Road
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long, we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. –Romans 8:35-39
I take great comfort from these verses lately. I have found myself quite alone in my walk with the Lord. But I am never out of the protective covering of God's love for me. God is all I need to keep pressing on.
Seemingly methodically, I have had friendships shaved away in one form or another. In some cases it is strictly a geographic separation. In others, and much more recently, the friendship has dissolved completely.
At first I was upset, deeply hurt, by the loss of what I had come to think of as my support group. I felt sorry for myself as I looked at what friends I did have were so many miles away. I thought I needed a solid friendship right here with me. Yet through all of these trails with my relationships God has been trying to teach me to REALLY depend on Him. I have finally realized that everything and everyone can be stripped away from me; and then what am I left with? God is all I have when all else is gone. Yet if I have not been relying on God alone for all things before these things are stripped away then my whole world is rocked. And boy was it ever! Yes, God showed me that I have been relying heavily on things and people instead of God. I praise Him for showing me each place where I have placed my trust in something other than Him.
I am no longer upset about losing my friendships. I am seeing Romans 8:28 working here. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for the good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
2 Corinthians 6:16 says What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God… An idol is anything you put before God. If I was really putting God at the top then I wouldn’t turn to other people or other things with my life happenings first. If I really held God in the highest position I would have turned to Him first. Instead I turned to my friends. I turned to a bottle of alcohol, convincing myself that it was the only way to calm down and get the relief from stress I so desperately needed.
These two things, alcohol and friends, were idols for me. I had fallen so far behind in my walk with the Lord because I invested more in my relationships with my friends than I did in my relationship with God.
You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are around you—for the Lord your God in your midst is a jealous God—lest the anger of the Lord your God be kindled against you, and he destroy you from off the face of the earth. –Deuteronomy 6:14-15
My God is a jealous God. How I must have hurt Him by not turning to Him!!
Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are enlarged; bring me out of my distresses. Consider my affliction and my trouble, and forgive all my sins. –Psalm 25:16-18
This is what God wanted me to do all along. God wants me to always go to Him, for everything. Yet big or small, when any trial or stress came upon me I turned to a friend of a bottle. When it was taken away from me, when all I had left was God, only then did I realize He is all I ever needed.
I also believe He is trying to strengthen me, to strengthen my faith and trust in Him. These are troubling times we live in. I am seeing many of my brothers and sisters in Christ suffering similarly. Seems many of them are finding friendships falling away, even ones that have lasted decades. This is why I am sharing all of this right now. I know my Savior is returning very soon. I feel it will be sooner than many think. I think this is a time when God is testing His children. The more faith we have more we will be able to endure. Though Christ is coming again very soon, we must be able to endure the time before His return.
We crave companionship with others of like faith. Yet we must trust and believe that God really is all we need. This is the part of the narrow road that is so narrow that we must walk alone to continue on. God is our only companion when the road is this narrow. This is the time that all we can do for our brothers and sisters is done through prayer. We need to turn our full attention toward our relationship with God. By stripping us of any earthly crutch we are left to either lean completely upon God or fall into a deep pit of misery and despair. The only way to come out on the other side is with God. Do not fail to finish the final race my friends. The end is just around the corner.
21 April 2013
Faith in Deliverance
I am so thankful for the sufferings of Christ Jesus. I am so thankful for the sufferings of those who hold strong to their faith in Christ. Through the suffering we can see God's glory. Our trials and the suffering through those trials are never in vain.
Do you think your trials not note worthy? Even in the "smallest" trials and the "smallest" sufferings God is glorified when we cling to Him. You see, just as all sin is the same "size" in God's eyes, just as all measure of blessings is the same in God's eyes, so is our sufferings. You either suffer for Christ or you do not. You either sin or you do not. You either use your blessings for Christ or you do not. There is no grey area in God's eyes.
As I was reading 2 Corinthians this morning, I was overcome with a sense of awe. I thought about how much the apostles suffered. I thought about how much they endured. All of it was done through their faith, their complete trust in God.
But then I considered "size" in God's eyes. Their suffering truly was great - but it was the fact that through all of the suffering, no matter how much, they clung to the promises of God. It came down to choice. They could either suffer for Christ or not. To them all that mattered was Christ. All that mattered was pleasing our Father. They took Him seriously and through them we are shown how to hang on, no matter what we must endure. Because all that we suffer here on earth is but worldly things. Once we have given our soul to Christ it is only our body that suffers. We must remember that our bodies are mere shells. Christ, too, suffered in the same ways we do. He showed us to turn to God. To keep His word. To do His work no matter what the world may say or do. That is faith. Faith in deliverance.
The deliverance we receive through or from trials on earth is only the beginning. The ultimate deliverance is when He delivers our souls through Heaven's Gate and into our Abba's Eternal Kingdom.
The road to God's Kingdom is narrow and difficult, even impossible at times. Yet NOTHING is impossible for God. Therefore if you are on His road you must trust Him that He will do the impossible and carry you through the places where you cannot make it alone. The road may seem lonely. But keep the faith that you are NEVER alone. His road may not have many other humans traveling on it, but it is not desolate. He places angels to help us along the way. His Holy Spirit is within us so that we may recognize Him and His help. Throughout the journey we are in God's hand. Though we, ourselves, may let go of Him He never lets go of us. Once we are in His hand NOTHING can take us from it.
His promises that He will always be there for us are fulfilled every time we cling to Him through our trials. When we tire, He is there to comfort and renew us. When we are recharged and set out again, He is there to amplify our light which is only a reflection of Him. Without Him there is no light.
Darkness is the absence of light. Our shadows are formed because our bodies do not allow light to pass through them. So how do we minimize our shadows so they are not cast out - covering anything that needs His light? The only answer is to have His light within us. So that we do not block His light but reflect it to cast out the darkness.
How do we best reflect His light? The only answer is to have more of Him within us. Feed the light or not. When you get into His word. When you spend quality time in His presence. When you spend time with Him, talking to Him, listening to Him. That is how you feed the light. The closer you are to Him, the deeper your relationship with Him, the brighter your reflection of Him becomes. You know the saying, "You are what you hang with."? I would much rather hang with God. Even if it means hanging on the cross with Christ.
The point is, you're either with God or without Him. The trials do not change. The circumstances do not change regardless of which choice you make - to be with God or not. But the way in which you go through them is dependent upon which choice you make. A person with God may have cancer and suffer greatly from their affliction, but they can have a peace so great and His light within them so bright that no one can deny seeing that light and peace within them. Yet a person without God suffering the same affliction will be overcome by their bodily affliction. Because they do not have His light within them, because they are not with God - the impossible remains impossible.
"Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now am found. Was blind but now I see."
How unworthy we are to receive such grace. But so much more does He love us that He would gift it to us if we only accept. Once we accept His freely given gift, we are saved. We are no longer lost in the darkness. The scales from our eyes fall away and we are no longer blind but can see because of His light. He lights our paths. He carries us when we have not the strength. He reveals the truth to us and His promises become more real to us as His ever faithfulness proves time and time again that He is worthy of our praise. He is worthy of our trust. He is worthy of our faith in Him. He WILL deliver us into His kingdom. Knowing, trusting, believing this TRUTH, this PROMISE, is all we need to keep going. Because if you truly trust, believe, and have faith in His deliverance, there is absolutely nothing to fear. He never tells us how it will happen. He just promises that it WILL happen. THAT is what we must hang onto. No matter what, no matter how, deliverance WILL happen.
Do you think your trials not note worthy? Even in the "smallest" trials and the "smallest" sufferings God is glorified when we cling to Him. You see, just as all sin is the same "size" in God's eyes, just as all measure of blessings is the same in God's eyes, so is our sufferings. You either suffer for Christ or you do not. You either sin or you do not. You either use your blessings for Christ or you do not. There is no grey area in God's eyes.
As I was reading 2 Corinthians this morning, I was overcome with a sense of awe. I thought about how much the apostles suffered. I thought about how much they endured. All of it was done through their faith, their complete trust in God.
But then I considered "size" in God's eyes. Their suffering truly was great - but it was the fact that through all of the suffering, no matter how much, they clung to the promises of God. It came down to choice. They could either suffer for Christ or not. To them all that mattered was Christ. All that mattered was pleasing our Father. They took Him seriously and through them we are shown how to hang on, no matter what we must endure. Because all that we suffer here on earth is but worldly things. Once we have given our soul to Christ it is only our body that suffers. We must remember that our bodies are mere shells. Christ, too, suffered in the same ways we do. He showed us to turn to God. To keep His word. To do His work no matter what the world may say or do. That is faith. Faith in deliverance.
The deliverance we receive through or from trials on earth is only the beginning. The ultimate deliverance is when He delivers our souls through Heaven's Gate and into our Abba's Eternal Kingdom.
The road to God's Kingdom is narrow and difficult, even impossible at times. Yet NOTHING is impossible for God. Therefore if you are on His road you must trust Him that He will do the impossible and carry you through the places where you cannot make it alone. The road may seem lonely. But keep the faith that you are NEVER alone. His road may not have many other humans traveling on it, but it is not desolate. He places angels to help us along the way. His Holy Spirit is within us so that we may recognize Him and His help. Throughout the journey we are in God's hand. Though we, ourselves, may let go of Him He never lets go of us. Once we are in His hand NOTHING can take us from it.
His promises that He will always be there for us are fulfilled every time we cling to Him through our trials. When we tire, He is there to comfort and renew us. When we are recharged and set out again, He is there to amplify our light which is only a reflection of Him. Without Him there is no light.
Darkness is the absence of light. Our shadows are formed because our bodies do not allow light to pass through them. So how do we minimize our shadows so they are not cast out - covering anything that needs His light? The only answer is to have His light within us. So that we do not block His light but reflect it to cast out the darkness.
How do we best reflect His light? The only answer is to have more of Him within us. Feed the light or not. When you get into His word. When you spend quality time in His presence. When you spend time with Him, talking to Him, listening to Him. That is how you feed the light. The closer you are to Him, the deeper your relationship with Him, the brighter your reflection of Him becomes. You know the saying, "You are what you hang with."? I would much rather hang with God. Even if it means hanging on the cross with Christ.
The point is, you're either with God or without Him. The trials do not change. The circumstances do not change regardless of which choice you make - to be with God or not. But the way in which you go through them is dependent upon which choice you make. A person with God may have cancer and suffer greatly from their affliction, but they can have a peace so great and His light within them so bright that no one can deny seeing that light and peace within them. Yet a person without God suffering the same affliction will be overcome by their bodily affliction. Because they do not have His light within them, because they are not with God - the impossible remains impossible.
"Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now am found. Was blind but now I see."
How unworthy we are to receive such grace. But so much more does He love us that He would gift it to us if we only accept. Once we accept His freely given gift, we are saved. We are no longer lost in the darkness. The scales from our eyes fall away and we are no longer blind but can see because of His light. He lights our paths. He carries us when we have not the strength. He reveals the truth to us and His promises become more real to us as His ever faithfulness proves time and time again that He is worthy of our praise. He is worthy of our trust. He is worthy of our faith in Him. He WILL deliver us into His kingdom. Knowing, trusting, believing this TRUTH, this PROMISE, is all we need to keep going. Because if you truly trust, believe, and have faith in His deliverance, there is absolutely nothing to fear. He never tells us how it will happen. He just promises that it WILL happen. THAT is what we must hang onto. No matter what, no matter how, deliverance WILL happen.
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