It's Not A Cake Walk

Yes, and everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. 2 Timothy 3:12 (NLT)

Yesterday, I talked about how when I was walking through something really hard I decided this couldn’t be God’s will. As I pondered that thought, I was surprised. Where did I get that idea? Where did I start to believe that God would only allow easy things in my life?

Unfortunately, it’s one of the false things we are taught in our society and it’s probably bled into our gospel. Life should be easy. Life should be happy. We shouldn’t suffer. This is flat out wrong. It is through our suffering and through our challenges that we grow. It’s through the things that push us that our character is strengthened. Most important, it is during these times when we see God more clearly.

Just so we are not going on my opinion here. Let’s look at some Bible texts.

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted;
    he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.
The righteous person faces many troubles,
    but the Lord comes to the rescue each time. Psalm 34:18-19 (NLT)

God is our refuge and strength,
always ready to help in times of trouble. Psalm 46:1 (NLT)

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV)

So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good. 1 Peter 4:19 (NIV)

The Bible is pretty clear that when we follow Jesus, there will be suffering. It is also pretty clear that God will not leave us in the middle of it. He will be there, helping us, encouraging us and providing refuge.

My take away? If I love and follow Jesus I am going to experience suffering. Think back to all the people of the Bible and to Jesus himself. Everyone did. But I am not alone. God will not leave me to figure it out myself. Instead, he will grow me through it. I will learn more about him and his infinite love during these times than any other time in my life. I need to trust him.

Just Because It's Hard

And I will lead the blind
in a way that they do not know,
in paths that they have not known
I will guide them.
I will turn the darkness before them into light,
the rough places into level ground.
These are the things I do,
and I do not forsake them. Isaiah 42:16 (ESV)

Back in April, I had a traumatic health event happen and afterward, I had to decide whether or not to have a surgery to fix the problem. I am one of those people who thinks you should try everything you can to heal yourself naturally. I think medicine is a good thing but I believe we could be healthier, heal naturally if we put in a little effort and look to medicine after we do those other things.

Having a surgery was something I did not want to do. At. All. Without it though, there was a good chance that I would have more traumatic events and that I may not come out on the other side. I asked everyone I knew what they thought. I studied. I researched. Everything pointed to having it but I still didn’t want to. Finally, I asked God. I felt that he said I should. I scheduled the surgery.

After the surgery, recovery was hard. I remember the second night I was awake most of it believing I wasn’t going to make it through this. I prayed and told God that I knew I had misunderstood and he wouldn’t have told me to have this surgery because this was one of the hardest things I’d ever done and it was awful.

A couple of days later the surgeon came in to discharge me. He looked at me and explained what they found on the pathology report. He said that the part they removed was so diseased and I quote “You would had have major problems with this if you had not had it removed.”

I realized as I processed this that God was in it after all. Sometimes, the path we are walking is not easy. Sometimes, he gives us hard things to do. Just because it’s hard, just because we feel like we are not going to make it, doesn’t mean God isn’t in it. He is.

When things are really, really hard and you feel like you are not going to make it through, trust. Trust that God is in it with you. Trust that he didn’t forsake you. Trust that he knows what you need to do, even if it hurts.

Grace

A minute in God’s Word will change your life. Take a moment to read the text below and then answer the questions at the bottom of the post.

But because God was so gracious, so very generous, here I am. And I’m not about to let his grace go to waste. Haven’t I worked hard trying to do more than any of the others? Even then, my work didn’t amount to all that much. It was God giving me the work to do, God giving me the energy to do it. 1 Corinthians 15:10 (MSG)

What are some of God’s character traits described in this text?
What did Paul do with what he was given?
What will you do with the gifts you are given? What will you do with this extravagant grace?
No matter how hard you work, who does everything depend on?

Fighting Through

The laborers carried on their work with one hand supporting their load and one hand holding a weapon. Nehemiah 4:17 (NLT)

What do you do when you are up against a difficult time? When you work so hard and you’re exhausted and it feels like not matter what you do you are taking two steps backwards. How do you handle the load and not get discouraged and give up?

Today’s Bible verse talks about that. The people were working hard. They were taking shifts, not sleeping, not bathing. They were exhausted but kept working. They worked with one hand while their other hand handled a weapon so they could defend themselves against their enemies.

I know some days it feels like you should just give up and throw in the towel. Goodness knows I’ve been there. I’ve told God I am tired and I want to give up. I imagine him saying “Oh my child, you are trying to carry the load by yourself. Use what I’ve given you and just keep walking.”

When I think of what God has given me, I realize I have weapons at my disposal I think of the Holy Spirit, the Bible and Prayer. The Holy Spirit because it is he that lives in me that gives me the strength and courage to keep going. He talks to me, guides me and reminds me of who God is. He puts the right people in place to encourage me and pray for me. The Bible is also how God speaks. When I read it, I am instructed, I am challenged and emboldened and my heart finds peace. During my prayer, I pour out my heart to God. The praises for who he is and all the way he shares his love, the petitions because I am always asking him for something - for help, for courage, for people’s healing and the prayers of surrender.

Nehemiah had these tools too. He relied on the Holy Spirit for direction and protection. All throughout his journey he prayed and prayed and prayed. He knew who God was and God’s promises. He had memorized the journey of his people and he recalled God’s power during those times. Nehemiah was given a really hard task. But he wasn’t given it to carry alone. God was working with him and through him the entire time.

Nehemiah’s story encourages me to never give up. Keep trusting in the God I know and use the weapons he’s given me to keep fighting.

In My Little Space

Each one repaired the section immediately across from his own house. Nehemiah 3:28 (NLT)

Our world is a messy place. All you have to do is read or listen to the news and you can see that sin is rampant. There are so many hurting people. There is so much that is broken. Paying attention to all that is wrong can be extremely overwhelming.

I am tempted sometimes to give up. There is too much to do. Too much pain and there is no way I can make a difference. How could I possibly help?

But this is Satan’s lie. As with Nehemiah, if we each would rebuild in our area, we’d make a huge impact on the war against evil. My neighborhood looks different than your neighborhood. The people I see every day are not the people you see. That’s the wonderful thing about sharing the Gospel and growing God’s kingdom.

If each of us would make an effort where we are in our little space, more and more people would be reached. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we will encounter people who need the gifts we have to offer. Not our spouse’s gifts, not our coworker’s gifts, not a fellow Christian’s gifts but our gifts. The perfect gift in the perfect place at the perfect time.

That’s what God does. He asks us to work right where we are and then he sends the people that need to be loved.

A Minute In It - Hanging In There

A minute in God’s Word will change your life. Take a moment to read the text below and then answer the questions at the bottom of the post.

17 But now I said to them, “You know very well what trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire. Let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and end this disgrace!” 18 Then I told them about how the gracious hand of God had been on me, and about my conversation with the king.

They replied at once, “Yes, let’s rebuild the wall!” So they began the good work.

19 But when Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem the Arab heard of our plan, they scoffed contemptuously. “What are you doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” they asked.

20 I replied, “The God of heaven will help us succeed. We, his servants, will start rebuilding this wall. But you have no share, legal right, or historic claim in Jerusalem.” Nehemiah 2:17-20 (NLT)

As Nehemiah began to talk to the Israelites, what was the first story he shared?
How did the people respond?
Was everyone happy about the task Nehemiah was given?
What did the naysayers do?
Who did Nehemiah trust to complete the job?

Even when God calls us to a task, it doesn’t mean the task will be easy. Nehemiah was called, God miraculously answered his prayer and still he ran into problems during the rebuilding. When God calls us, we will face adversity but we should always recount the way God has moved so far and trust that he will finish the task.

A Minute In It - Believing

A minute in God’s Word will change your life. Take a moment to read the text below and then answer the questions at the bottom of the post.

1 Early the following spring, in the month of Nisan, during the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes’ reign, I was serving the king his wine. I had never before appeared sad in his presence. 2 So the king asked me, “Why are you looking so sad? You don’t look sick to me. You must be deeply troubled.”

Then I was terrified, 3 but I replied, “Long live the king! How can I not be sad? For the city where my ancestors are buried is in ruins, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.”

4 The king asked, “Well, how can I help you?”

With a prayer to the God of heaven, 5 I replied, “If it please the king, and if you are pleased with me, your servant, send me to Judah to rebuild the city where my ancestors are buried.”

6 The king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked, “How long will you be gone? When will you return?” After I told him how long I would be gone, the king agreed to my request.

7 I also said to the king, “If it please the king, let me have letters addressed to the governors of the province west of the Euphrates River, instructing them to let me travel safely through their territories on my way to Judah. 8 And please give me a letter addressed to Asaph, the manager of the king’s forest, instructing him to give me timber. I will need it to make beams for the gates of the Temple fortress, for the city walls, and for a house for myself.” And the king granted these requests, because the gracious hand of God was on me.

9 When I came to the governors of the province west of the Euphrates River, I delivered the king’s letters to them. The king, I should add, had sent along army officers and horsemen to protect me. Nehemiah 2:1-9 (NLT)

How long had it been since Nehemiah started asking God for help?
When the king asked him what he could do to help him, what was the first thing Nehemiah did?
The king asked Nehemiah for his plan. Did Nehemiah have one?

For the four months that he was praying, he was also planning. Nehemiah was waiting on God’s timing but also preparing for what would happen when God moved. When we pray for a seemingly impossible prayer, do we move forward to get ready for God’s answer or do we do nothing, not really believing that God will deliver?

A Minute In It - Prayer

A minute in God’s Word will change your life. Take a moment to read the text below and then answer the questions at the bottom of the post.

4 When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven. 5 Then I said,

“O Lord, God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps his covenant of unfailing love with those who love him and obey his commands, 6 listen to my prayer! Look down and see me praying night and day for your people Israel. I confess that we have sinned against you. Yes, even my own family and I have sinned! 7 We have sinned terribly by not obeying the commands, decrees, and regulations that you gave us through your servant Moses.

8 “Please remember what you told your servant Moses: ‘If you are unfaithful to me, I will scatter you among the nations. 9 But if you return to me and obey my commands and live by them, then even if you are exiled to the ends of the earth, I will bring you back to the place I have chosen for my name to be honored.’

10 “The people you rescued by your great power and strong hand are your servants. 11 O Lord, please hear my prayer! Listen to the prayers of those of us who delight in honoring you. Please grant me success today by making the king favorable to me. Put it into his heart to be kind to me.”

In those days I was the king’s cup-bearer. Nehemiah 1:4-11 (NLT)

Nehemiah received bad news from his homeland. What was the first thing he did?
After mourning, then what?
As you read this prayer of Nehemiah, what are the components to his prayers?

First he praised God and worshiped who he was.
Then he confessed his sin and the sin of the people.
Next he remembered God’s promises.
Then he asked God for what he wanted and he was pretty specific.

There isn’t a right way to pray but I love that Nehemiah’s prayer focused on God. It was about who God was, what he said he wanted in his people, what he promised he would do and then Nehemiah asked him for something seemingly impossible believing he could do it.

When we come to God, are our prayers more about him or us?