HARD TIMES OFFER A CHANCE TO GROW

"God does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of
the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: 'What have you
done?'" - Daniel 4:35

The economy is in recovery, but most people don't seem to find it very
comforting. They're more preoccupied with the world's political scene
than they are on the rising expectations for corporate earnings. And no
wonder. It's not easy to focus on your investment portfolio when the
news of the day continually reminds us of terrorist threats and the
inadequacies of our homeland security. These are scary and potentially
deadly times.
Most Christians, at one time or another, will ask God why He allows
pain and disappointment to touch His children. When we meet the Lord face to
face, we'll have an opportunity to ask Him in person. I wouldn't be
surprised if part of His answer turns out to be: "Those things happened
because I was answering your prayers, to give you what you asked for!"
Can you imagine God saying to you as His child:
"You prayed that you could become mature, didn't you? I'm teaching you
how to depend on me more."
"You prayed for more faith, didn't you? I'm giving you a chance to
trust
me more."
"You prayed that you might know Me better, didn't you? I'm helping you
to seek Me more."
"You prayed that you might glorify me with your life, didn't you? I'm
refining you more."
When we pray prayers that contain such "spiritual" requests, we can
have confidence we're praying according to God's will. We expect Him to
grant us, in His own timing, these qualities of the Christian life we're
seeking. But I think that subconsciously we might also believe that God
answers them with a kind of supernatural lightning bolt. Something
like,
"Well, bless your heart, dear child, here's all the faith, love and
Christ-likeness you'll ever need." Zap!
Guess what? It doesn't usually work that way.
. Do you want to mature in your Christian walk? Then expect some
suffering. "Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because
we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character;
and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has
poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has
given us." (Romans 5:3-5)
. Do you want to have your faith strengthened? Then expect your faith
to be tested. "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials
of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops
perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be
mature and complete, not lacking anything." (James 1:2-4)
. Do you want to know God better? Then expect to give up the things of
this world that are holding you back. "I consider everything a loss
compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord,
for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, so that
I may gain Christ and be found in him... I want to know Christ and the
power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his
sufferings." (Philippians 3:7-10)
. Do you want to receive praise from Him for the life you've lived?
Then expect to go through trials. "In this you greatly rejoice, though now
for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of
trials. These have come so that your faith - of greater worth than
gold,which perishes even though refined by fire - may be proved genuine and
may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."
(1 Peter 1:6-7)
I encourage you to immerse your mind in words that will help you to
know God more intimately, and that will remind you that your God is always
present, invariably loving, inevitably faithful, and absolutely worthy
of all your confidence. Consider this look into God's fatherly heart
found in Jeremiah 32: "I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I
will never stop doing good to them....I will rejoice in doing them
good...with all my heart and with all my soul." (Jeremiah 32:40-41)
The only condition we must meet to be a part of this wonderful covenant
is "to put our hope in Him as the all-satisfying Refuge and Treasure.
God takes pleasure in this response with all His heart, because it
magnifies the glory of His grace and satisfies the longing of our
soul."