Today's devotional over at BibleProphecyUpdate was titled Opposition. The focus was on the hardship that one may suffer in trying to do God's will. This really spoke to me, because it gave a timely reminder that, while God did not promise an easy life, He did promise the grace to get through it. When the disciples had been faced with persecution by the chief priests et al (as per Acts 4), they did not pray that their opponents or obstacles be removed. Instead they asked for boldness. At first, I'll admit this sounded a little crazy. Why would you NOT want the sources of your troubles to be blasted away, wiped from the face of the earth as if they never existed? Okay, well maybe 'wipe' is a tad strong, but you get the idea. Troubles suck, therefore, removal of said troubles might just equal good life? Or does it?
The False Attraction of the Trouble-Free
The fact of the matter is that everyone wants a trouble-free life (I'll admit that even I do some of the time). But at the same time, it's important to recall that while trouble-free might sound all nice, it doesn't really get you where you need to go. What do I mean by that? Well for one thing, as paradoxical as it might sound, trouble builds faith. And the greater your faith the less fearful you will be. You need to go through the fire, much like a sword that's being forged, before you can truly be effective for God. As it is written in James 1:2-4:
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. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
This signifies therefore that being trouble-free isn't all the rage as one might think. I personally believe that if we were all comfortable we'd never extend ourselves to achieve anything great. Achievement is rooted in dissatisfaction and discomfort, and it is commonly perceived that this is because it drives us to either change our circumstances or make ourselves better in order to overcome them. But even that is a worldly perspective, and I'm sure there are self-help books aplenty that will support that. But what does the Word say about it?
God, the Shield in the Storm
Notice, the shield in the storm. God will not remove the storm, but He will keep you through the dangers. After all, where would faith be? The challenge trusting God that He will enable you to overcome your circumstances (just like the disciples did) not to believe that changing yourself will help. We oftentimes run into brick walls when we try that because we pursue paths outside of God's will. Boldness is found within God's will as He will enable us to achieve His mandate. Being outside of God's will, on the other hand, amounts to walking off a lit path straight into the dark forest where a lot of things that aren't nice are waiting. Between things that aren't nice, and a lit path with a guide, I'll choose the lit path everytime. So let's stick to that and remember that the Lord's grace is abundant; there is no such thing as an insurmountable problem for God.
Til next time,
Blessings!
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