Enduring Truth
Facing Life's Hurts
Are you sometimes hung up by trying to understand God’s dealings with you?
When do those times occur?
For me, it’s when I make demands.
Help me, give me good things, make that person stop hurting me, don’t let me suffer. The problem with those demands is that they spring from an over-emphasis on one person: ME. Those demands have one goal: Make ME more comfortable.
I must remind myself that whatever circumstances come my way, they are first filtered through His fingertips.
When I am hurt by someone or I experience suffering, my first question should be, “What do I need to learn about You from this hurt, Lord?” And the second should be, “How can I best learn it?”
The demands I listed may not be the same as yours, but most of us demand things from God that will make our lives easier. In God’s economy, a rough life is not the worst thing to be feared.
A rough end to life is the thing to fear.
Coming to the end of your life without knowing Jesus Christ brings a far worse life in the here and now–and it will culminate in a far worse place than we could ever imagine.
Jesus knows. The Bible says He’s been there–so we won’t have to.
God’s truth will endure to the last generation of humans born on this earth. After I’m gone from the earth, His truth will still be told and re-told in the lives of those who come after me.
But You, O Lord, shall endure forever, and the remembrance of Your name to all generations.
(Psalm 102:18 NKJV)
I must do the best job I can to live out that truth while I’m alive, while my feet still touch the dusty ground. The eternal destinies of the generations who follow may hang in the balance. Whatever hard circumstances God allows, handled His way, can become a beacon directing them back to Him.
Or, handled with anger, pride, and a why me attitude, those same circumstances can become a door slammed in their faces, cutting them off from the stupendous mercy and grace of the God who fiercely loves them and relentlessly pursues them.
What harsh life situations do you face?
Have you determined to view them through the lens of eternity, and allow God to work on your behalf?
May God give us grace as we diligently seek to live life His way, not ours.