Trusting God During Tough Times

One of the most difficult things we face today is the task of remaining focused on the promises of the Lord during tough or difficult times. The devil delights in doing his best to cause the saints of God to doubt the promises of God. However, it is our responsibility to remain faithful and to remember that all of the promises of God are true. The Bible plainly states that, “God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?” (Num. 23:19; NLT) This lets us know that our God does not make promises haphazardly. He always knows what He is saying and is always able to make good on all of His promises even though it seems that we sometimes experience problems while we wait on the materialization of the promises. All we have to do is to hold on to the Words of God because they are all true. Therefore, all we need to know is that anything God says will happen will happen.

Let us be reminded of the dream He showed to Joseph. Even though Joseph had to experience periods of horrible difficulties, that which God showed him did come to pass. One of the problems we are faced with today is the fact that we are so used to having it our way and in our own time. But we all must remember that the promises of God are not like going to a fast-food restaurant. We have become so used to having things on demand that even when we are praying we tell God to ‘do it right now.’ We cannot approach the Throne of Grace in the same manner as we do when we go through the drive-thru at a fast food restaurant. We cannot place demands on God and expect to receive our order at the time of our request. There is a proper way in which we are to approach the Throne of God.

The Bible says, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” (2 Chron. 7:14; KJV) Note that the Bible says we are to approach the Throne of Grace in a state of humility. It is not necessary to seek God for ‘things.’ All we have to do is to seek God’s face and not His hands. He already knows what our needs are and has already promised to fill all of our needs. Our difficulty comes when we seek God for the wrong things and in the wrong manner.

Some of our problems come because we reveal the promises of God to the wrong people. Every person we associate with may not have our best interest at hand. In other words, some people may be jealous of the way the Lord is blessing you.

Joseph told his dreams to his brothers only to find out that they were not happy for him and they eventually sought to do him harm. Indeed, they did sell him into slavery to a band of mercenaries who in turn sold him to the captain of the king of Egypt’s army, whose name was Potiphar. Potiphar saw that God blessed the work of Joseph’s hand and he liked Joseph so much that he placed him in charge of all of his affairs. Although Potiphar respected Joseph highly, there was yet a problem with Potiphar’s wife, which caused Joseph to be cast into jail. But God’s hand of protection was still with Joseph, even while he was in the jail.

While in jail, God gave Joseph favor with the Jailer, who in turn placed Joseph over the affairs of the jail, which was actually the responsibility of the jailer to do. God’s hand of protection was still over Joseph and this shows that even through much difficulty, the hand of God was still guiding Joseph’s destiny. We too, must remember that even though we may not have seen God’s promises materialize yet, we should remain faithful and trusting in the Lord because God’s Word is always faithful and true.

It was during his stay in jail that the king had a dream which he wanted to know the meaning of and a former prisoner told the king about Joseph. Because God was faithful in giving Joseph the interpretation of the dream, the king also liked how God was using Joseph. Because of this, Joseph was placed into the position which was second only to the king. Joseph was now in the position of guiding Egypt through a mighty famine. It was during this famine that other nations sought relief through Egypt. Again, the hand of God was guiding Joseph’s destiny. He has now gone “from the pit, to the prison, and now he is in the palace.” Only God can show us this kind of endless favor.

It was during this mighty famine that Joseph’s family also sought relief and came to Egypt for substance to maintain them during the great famine. Joseph recognized his brothers even though his identity was not revealed to them. Even though they were in his presence and engaged in conversation with him, they failed to recognize him. And even through these years of persecution, God was yet blessing Joseph and guiding his destination as Joseph never gave up in honoring the God of his salvation. We too must remember that even though we will sometimes face difficulties, we should always remain faithful to God and trusting in the promises of God.

It was indeed during this time of famine that the dream God showed to Joseph materialized. His brothers and his father eventually bowed down to him. But the end result was a great and mighty family reunion.

Let us always be reminded that we too should forever trust in the promises of God even during our tough times. For the Bible has said that we shall suffer persecution. As 2 Timothy 3:12 (KJV) says, “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” So just hold on and keep being faithful and trusting in God. Remember that the Bible says, “For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” (Hab. 2:3; KJV)

Put On God’s Armour

In the Bible we read, “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” (Ephesians 6:11, KJV). I am wondering how many people really pay attention to the phrase, “whole armour of God.” The question is, do all Christians really understand what it means to put on the “whole” armour of God? Armour is the protection which is used to guard against injury during battle.

Contrary to our carnal way of thinking, God’s armour is not a ‘material armour, rather it is used in spiritual warfare. The Bible declares, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” (Ephesians 6:12, KJV). This means then that we must start to think in a spiritual manner, for the battle is fought in our way of thinking and that’s in our minds.

This same text then lets us know that the battle comes in the evil day and evil affects the way we think. If we are not on guard, we may react to our problems in an ungodly manner. For it is the devil’s tactic to try to take our minds away from thinking about the goodness of our Lord and Savior. It is no wonder that our first instruction is that of “having your loins girt about with truth.” This means that what holds all else up and keeps it together is our knowledge of spiritual truth. Truth is what sets us free from sin and sinning. For the Bible has declared, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32, KJV). The devil cannot harm you if you know the truth. Always follow only that which you know is true. Therefore, it is incumbent upon each of us to continually study the Word of God.

In addition to “truth” the Bible then adds, “having on the breastplate of righteousness.” The breastplate protects the area surrounding the heart. The heart is a vital organ without which life cannot be sustained, so it is with our spiritual life. It is no wonder then that David said in Psalm 51:10, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me” (KJV).

We then are instructed, “And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.” We must always be mindful to walk peacefully with and in all truth with all mankind. For the scripture has said, “Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls.” (Jer. 6:16, KJV). We must be willing to walk in all righteousness, regardless of how tough the battle.

Our next instruction is, “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.” (Eph. 6:16, KJV). The military shield of the time was as follows: a large oblong shield, or scuta, like a door, [thura ( qu/ra )] made of wood and covered with hides. Its purpose was to provide a portable covering for the carrier, to guard against all darts of the enemy. The Word of God is our ready shield against any dart fired by the enemy. Know the Word of God and live a godly and worry-free spiritual life. Faith is what keeps us moving forward in the Lord. It dosen’t matter what the situation might look like. Just know, with assurance that things will be just as the Word of God said they will be. Faith is what moves, and pleases, God.

Then we are instructed, “And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Eph. 6:17, KJV). The helmet protects the head, which houses the brain wherein lies our capacity for processing thoughts. From our mind comes all ability to perceive or do anything else. Our mind directs all else about the function of the whole body. We are nothing more than what or who we perceive in our minds. It is in the mind where the “spiritual heart” of man lies. And the Bible declares, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” (Prov. 23:7a, KJV).

Then lastly we are told this, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.” (Eph. 6:18, KJV). In order for us to be effective as saints of God, we must be willing to do the whole Word of God. So let us remember that the Word of God told us to, “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” (Eph. 6:11, KJV). This means that we are to be ready and willing soldiers on the “Battle Field” for the Lord. A true soldier is willing to give his or her life for the cause of victory in Christ Jesus.

Remember, there is a song which says, ”I am on the Battlefield for my Lord. I promised Him that would serve Him ‘til I die. I’m on the battlefield for my Lord.” Is this song still true for you? It is for me. Therefore, let each of us put on ALL of God’s armour and stay strong in this battle for life.

Stay On the Wall

Many times, and all too often, we find ourselves being distracted while working the works which the Lord has assigned to our hands. These distractions come to take our minds away from the vital tasks which the Lord has assigned us to do. There is nothing more satisfying to the devil than to disrupt the works of the Lord. Everything the Lord assigns for us to do has value and is of great importance. The result of your completion of your God given assignment is another defeat of the enemy’s advances. The enemy’s aim is to disrupt and to stop the works of the Lord at any cost. So stay on top of the wall on which the Lord has assigned for you to work and don’t come down until the job is fully completed. I realize the load gets heavy and down right confusing at times; even sometimes to the point where we might get discouraged and want to give up. But when the going gets rough, that’s the time when we should try the hardest.

Discouragement is a terrible thing. When we are faced with the atmosphere of severe discouragement, we tend to want to throw up our hands and say “what’s the use?” These types of discouragements oftentimes come through persons who are quite familiar to us; and all too often from someone in whom we have had great trust. They are oftentimes the ones in whom we have entrusted with some of our innermost secrets.

In the Book of Nehemiah, the Lord had placed on Nehemiah’s heart to rebuild the wall; but distraction came through Sanballat, and those who were familiar to him, to distract the progress and successful completion of the wall. But Nehemiah, determined to complete the rebuilding of the wall, remained continuous in prayer while at the same time being ever so watchful set up a defense along with continuous watch, and the rebuild was successfully completed.

We are God’s church; working together as God’s people, following the flow laid out in God’s planned agenda, having a determination to accomplish all that the Lord has assigned for us to do. And in our effort to accomplish our goal we sometimes are faced with distractions from areas of our life which is most familiar to us. That is, from our families, our places of employment, and all too often from those in our place of worship. These are the times when our hurt is most severe, because these are the persons we trust the most and who can get the closest to us. Remember, it was Judas who exposed who Jesus was and it was Cain who killed Abel. It was also Joseph’s brothers who sold him into slavery.

Through it all, we must be ever so aware that we sometimes go through such distractions so that we can learn that God is yet true to His promises, that He will never leave us or forsake us. We should always be assured that if such distractions get to us, they had to be seen by God first. Let us be absolutely confident that God is already in each of our tomorrows and that He is positively with us right now. He also knows all about our yesterdays. So He is intimately familiar with each of our yesterdays, each of our todays, and He is already in all of our tomorrows. Therefore, He can’t fail us.

Therefore, remain vigilant; be ever so aware that our distractions come to force us to give up, and to come down from the wall on which the Lord has placed us. Let each of us stay on our walls and not come down until the job has achieved success. Let us let the world know that we are yet on the job for our Lord. Let each of us be absolutely attentive to completing the assignment on our assigned wall. Stay on your wall.

Let Go and Let God

God has promised to be with us always, even to the end of the world. But do we really, truly, trust and depend on Him as we should? This is a question to be answered by each of us individually. I know many of us have read the scripture writings about God being our refuge and strength and other scripture writings of like meaning, but do we take the time to really trust the Lord as we should? Or do we yet lean on our own understanding?

It appears for many that our knowledge of the scripture has become a hindrance. Many have equated ‘knowing’ the scripture with ‘doing’ the scripture. But if we really take the time to search the actions of ourselves against the Word of God, we will find that we yet have a ways to go in our total efforts to please the Lord. It is not we who make ourselves; rather it is the Lord who makes us. For the Bible lets us know that is He who makes us. The Bible declares, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” (Eph. 2:10; KJV).

Then Paul recognized his insufficiency when he said, “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. (Phil. 3:12; NLT). It is unfortunate that even now there are those saints among us who believe that they are perfect. This comes from reaching the wrong conclusion in their study of the scripture.

Because of this level of misunderstanding of the scripture, one can easily arrive at the wrong conclusions when seeking the Lord in some difficult matters. We fail to truly understand that the Lord is with us in times of great need and one may go through undue hardships simply because they fail to cast their difficult situations on the Lord. He is there waiting for us to cast all our troubles on Him. All we have to do is to let go of our problems and place them into the hands of the Lord. He delights in handling all of our problems.

So when you reach the point of impasse in dealing with problems, don’t hesitate to ‘Let go’ of them and allow the Lord to handle them. Just remember that 1 Peter 5:7 (NLT) says, “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.” So, my dear friends remain strong in the Lord in wake of problems that come your way. And always remember to “Let Go and Let God” take care of all your adverse situations.

Be encouraged to know that God IS Able to see you through. So let go and let God!

Are You Hungry and Thirsty Enough?

Many times we find individuals who idolize persons of religion for the wrong reasons. For the most part, many persons are idolized because of the gifts from the Lord which they possess and exercise when working in the vineyard. Many persons see the gift of healing or Word of Knowledge or other God-given gifts being exercised, and desire to do as they see other ‘obedient’ servants do. But what they don’t seem to recognize is, that is that person’s, or those persons’ God-given gifts being obedient to the move of the Lord.

We must all come to the knowledge that these servants who perform such Godly feats make themselves available for the Master’s use; that they might be made into the servants who remain available to God at all times. They continually fast and pray to be always in communion with the Lord in order that they might know the Master’s voice and that they make themselves willing servants ready for the Master’s use. They were hungry enough and thirsty enough to continually seek the Lord’s righteousness. For they knew and were obedient to the fact that the Bible calls for us to hunger and thirst for righteousness, “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” (Matthew 5:6 KJV)

It is not always pleasant while we are hungering and thirsting for righteousness because the enemy is always there to hinder our progress. We must continually recognize our insufficiency and remain vigilant in reaching for higher heights and deeper depths in the Lord. Therefore, we must recognize the value of such attainment and continually seek the Lord the more. We must eat and digest righteousness in order to receive the blessings of fulfillment coming from the Lord.

Most of all, we must be willing to divest ourselves of our humanity in order to achieve the height in God that we desire. In other words, we must want more of God than we want of ourselves. And in order to do this, we must want more of who God is than who we are. As it takes natural food to sustain the body, so it takes spiritual food to sustain a Godly spirit. And the more of a Godly spirit we take on, the more we develop a right Godly character. But we have to want it so bad that we will do any righteous, godly thing to obtain it. In other words, we must deny ourselves of all earthly pleasures in order to gain the level of righteousness we want.

Once we start to take on our Godly character, we will walk differently, we will act differently, we will look differently, and we will love every minute of it. It is then that we know that we are basking in the goodness of the Lord. Matthew 5:3-10 in The Message bible puts it this way, “You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule. You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you. You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought. You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God. He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat. You’re blessed when you care. At the moment of being ‘care-full,’ you find yourselves cared for. You’re blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world. You’re blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family. You’re blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God’s kingdom.”

Even though we will go through much turmoil to achieve the level of righteousness which pleases God, we should all be willing to ‘go through’ in order to please Him. So be willing to ‘go through’ in order to reach the high level in Christ Jesus. We will all find that it is all worth the effort. Let us give up all our earthly pleasures in order to really know Jesus. Let us be willing to ‘hunger and thirst’ after the pinnacle of righteousness in the Lord. Let us get to know Him in the fullest. How hungry and thirsty are you?  Are you hungry and thirsty enough?  Let us be filled with all Godly righteousness!