We all go through difficult times. There is not one person on planet Earth who doesn’t face times of adversity and trial. But Christians can put these challenging times in perspective…
“Job found his legacy through the grief he experienced. He was tried that his godliness might be confirmed and validated. In the same way, my troubles are intended to deepen my character and to clothe me in gifts I had little of prior to my difficulties. … Apparent adversity will ultimately become an advantage for those of us doing what is right, if we are willing to keep serving and to wait patiently.” —Lettie Cowman
“Afflictions are a spade which God uses to dig into His people’s hearts to find the gold of faith.” —William Gurnall
“That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our inner strength in the Lord is growing every day. These troubles and sufferings of ours are, after all, quite small and won’t last very long. Yet this short time of distress will result in God’s richest blessing upon us forever and ever! So we do not look at what we can see right now, the troubles all around us, but we look forward to the joys in heaven which we have not yet seen. The troubles will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.” —2 Corinthians 4:16-18
“Give me a new idea,” I said, While musing on a sleepless bed; “A new idea that’ll bring to earth A balm for souls of priceless worth; That’ll give men thoughts of things above, And teach them how to serve and love, That’ll banish every selfish thought, And rid men of the sins they’ve fought.”
The new thought came, just how, I’ll tell: ‘Twas when on bended knee I fell, And sought from Him who knows full well The way our sorrow to expel. See God in all things, great and small, And give Him praise whate’er befall, In life or death, in pain or woe, See God, and overcome thy foe.
I saw Him in the morning light, He made the day shine clear and bright; I saw Him in the noontide hour, And gained from Him refreshing shower. At eventide, when worn and sad, He gave me help, and made me glad. At midnight, when on tossing bed My weary soul to sleep He led.
I saw Him when great losses came, And found He loved me just the same. When heavy loads I had to bear, I found He lightened every care. By sickness, sorrow, sore distress, He calmed my mind and gave me rest. He’s filled my heart with gladsome praise Since I gave Him the upward gaze.
‘Twas new to me, yet old to some, This thought that to me has become A revelation of the way We all should live throughout the day; For as each day unfolds its light, We’ll walk by faith and not by sight. Life will, indeed, a blessing bring, If we SEE GOD IN EVERYTHING.” —A.E. Finn
This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.
A New Perspective Of Calvary
If Jesus Christ were only a martyr, His Cross would be of no significance; but if the Cross of Jesus Christ is the expression of the secret heart of God, the lever by which God lifts back the human race to what it was designed to be, then there is a new attitude to things. …
There are any number of amateur skeptics, and the men who are seeing the difference between “believing their beliefs,” and “believing God,” men, who, through the turmoil and the stress, are seeing that rationalism is not the basis of thing. According to the Bible, the basis of things is tragedy, and the way out is the way made by God in Redemption. The New Testament does not say that the human race is evolving, but that the human race is a magnificent ruin of what it was designed to be. …
Paul says the fundamental revelation of the New Testament is that God redeemed the whole human race when they were spitting in His face, as it were. …
The majority of people who have never been touched by affliction see Jesus Christ’s death as a thing beside the mark. When a man gets to his wits’ end and things go hard with him, his thick hide is pierced and he is stabbed wide awake, then for the first time he begins to see something else—“At last I see; I thought that He was stricken, smitten of God and afflicted; but now I see He was wounded for my transgressions.” …
Jesus Christ did not come to give us pretty ideas of God, or sympathy with ourselves; He came from a holy God to enable men, by the sheer power of His Redemption, to become holy.
From The Shadow Of An Agony
Oswald Chambers wrote these words in the midst of The Great War (what we now refer to as World War I), when everyone’s belief in rationalism was shaken to the core. Tragedy has a tendency to do that to us.
Chambers says that trouble in this world should point us to the unshakable, inescapable truth that this world is “a magnificent ruin of what it was designed to be,” and the only security and hope we have is a new life with God though the Redemption Jesus paid for at Calvary.
May any pain, suffering, or confusion you feel in this world help you see the Cross of Christ in a whole new light.
“How can we have rain without clouds? Our troubles have always brought us blessings, and they always will. They are the dark chariots of bright grace. These clouds will empty themselves before long, and every tender herb will be gladder for the shower. Our God may drench us with grief, but He will refresh us with mercy. Our Lord’s love-letters often come to us in black-edged envelopes. His wagons rumble, but they are loaded with benefits. His rod blossoms with sweet flowers and nourishing fruits. Let us not worry about the clouds, but sing because May flowers are brought to us through the April clouds and showers.
“O Lord, the clouds are the dust of Thy feet! How near Thou art in the cloudy and dark day! Love beholds Thee, and is glad. Faith sees the clouds emptying themselves and making the little hills rejoice on every side.” —Charles Spurgeon (emphasis added)
Have you ever noticed that kids would prefer to eat dessert more than vegetables? Well, maybe you’re an adult and you still feel the same way! But “veggies before dessert” is still a good motto to live by.
Why?
What happens if you eat only dessert? Do you eventually get healthier or are you setting yourself up for some unfavorable health conditions? What about if you only eat vegetables? The flavor may not be as good, but at least you’ll be getting healthier.
Jesus told His followers to expect the “veggie” times in time. He said, “In this world you will have trouble.” And He told us, “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of Me.” There were no ifs or maybes in those statements!
As Christians living on Earth, the Apostle Peter calls us “aliens and strangers.” That means that both our attitude and our lifestyle should be, well, alien compared to Earthlings. Especially when we’re in a veggie time of life.
Jesus was the Perfect Man. He never said anything wrong, and He never did anything wrong. Yet He was insulted, persecuted, and eventually killed in the most horrific way imaginable. But here’s the amazing thing: Jesus went through all of this without retaliating or threatening judgment on His persecutors. Peter said that the way Jesus went through this was intended to be an example for us.
The writer of Hebrews agreed—Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith, Who for the joy set before Him endured the Cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him Who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Notice it says, “for the joy set before Him.” Other translations say “because of the joy awaiting Him” or “He never lost sight of where He was headed” or “He never lost sight of the joy ahead of Him.” In other words, Jesus knew what God’s plan was from before the beginning of time, so He—as Peter said—kept on entrusting Himself to God.
We have to do the same thing!
I have to confess something. When I quoted the “veggie” part of a couple of verses earlier in this post, I left off the “dessert” part…
“I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven….” (Matthew 5:10-12)
He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater, He sendeth more strength when the labors increase; To added affliction He addeth His mercies, To multiplied trials His multiplied peace.
When we have exhausted our store of endurance, When our strength has failed ere the day is half done, When we reach the end of our hoarded resources Our Father’s full giving is only begun.
His love has no limit, His grace has no measure, His power no boundary known unto men; For out of His infinite riches in Jesus He giveth and giveth and giveth again. —Annie Johnson Flint
“God will make our obstacles serve His purposes. …
“The obstacles may be untruths told about us; a difficult occupation; ‘a thorn in the flesh’ (2 Corinthians 12:7); or our daily cross. And often we pray for their removal, for we tend to think that if only these were removed, we would live a more tender, pure, and holy life. … These are the very conditions we need for achievement, and they have been put in our lives as the means of producing the gifts and qualities for which we have been praying so long.
“We pray for patience for many years, and when something begins to test us beyond our endurance, we run from it. We try to avoid it, we see it as some insurmountable obstacle to our desired goal, and we believe that if it was removed, we would experience immediate deliverance and victory. This is not true! We would simply see the temptations to be impatient end. This would not be patience.
“The only way genuine patience can be acquired is by enduring the very trials that seem so unbearable today. Turn from your running and submit. … There is nothing in your life that distresses or concerns you that cannot become submissive to the highest purpose. Remember, they are God’s mountains. He puts them there for a reason, and we know He will never fail to keep His promise.” —F.B. Meyer
Corrie ten Boom is an amazing woman! She hid the Jews from the Nazis, was arrested for this “crime,” experienced unimaginable horrors in a concentration camp, and was miraculously released from prison just before all the women in her group were executed. And still she remained steadfast in her trust of God. I Stand At The Door And Knock is a collection of 40 of her radio broadcasts, especially directed to others going through difficult times.
Because these are radio transcriptions, each message feels very conversational and Corrie relates many of her personal experiences to her audience. All of this makes her message more believable to those struggling with challenges.
Each message concludes with a prayer that Corrie prayed for her listening audience, and I love how she ended nearly every prayer. She said, “Hallelujah! Amen.” In other words, she was already rejoicing in the answer to prayer as she finished praying it! What an inspiring woman!
If you are going through a difficult time—of if you know someone who is—and perhaps feel like no one knows how big your struggle is, this book will “speak your language.” These are honest, comforting words from someone who truly was battle-tested and came through victorious.
We all go through difficult times. There is not one person on planet Earth who doesn’t face times of adversity and trial. But Christians can put these challenging times in perspective…
Craig T. Owens 