The Advantage of Affliction

Psalm 119:71 "It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees."

What is our perspective on affliction? Affliction is something that causes pain and suffering. Can God use times like this for our good? The answer is of course YES! God allows these times to develop our character and drive us closer to Him. In the process of drawing closer, we have the chance to learn and lean on God’s decrees. His Word will never let us down.

But do we view God’s Word as a ‘life saving ring’ only to be used in an emergency. Or do we view it more like oxygen, something that is needed every moment of every day and without it we will die. Unfortunately because most people today only view God’s decrees as emergency precautions, God allows us to be driven to dependency through affliction.

So if you are experiencing affliction are you leaning what God wants and trusting in His faithfulness?

May we never lose our passion for God and His Word/decrees.

Keep Going

It has been a long time since I have taken time to write on here. Yet as God enables me to, I will try and share more regularly what He is talking with me about.

Psalm 13 says "How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, O Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death; my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,” and my foes will rejoice when I fall. But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me."

David’s example suggests four things that we should continue (this implies we are already doing these. If not we need to start) to do during difficult times:

1.    Keep praying—David continues to cry out to God. This is not just praying a casual prayer and an impassioned cry for God to respond. He pours out his heart to God. Don’t give up praying even when God seems far away.

2.   Keep trusting—It is relatively easy to have faith when things are going well, but the test of faith is when things don’t appear to be going well. Do we trust that God knows the big picture and is still in control doing what is best for us?

3.   Keep rejoicing—this in not rejoicing for the trials but in spite of them. It is rejoicing in God’s salvation. Are we celebrating God’s ability to rescue us, redeeming and restoring each and every situation?

4.   Keep worshipping—regardless of everything we go through we need to keep our focus on a good, good God and all that He does for us.

 As we begin to praise and worship God, it brings perspective to our problems. Sometimes, we find it’s helpful to look back on life and thank God for bringing us through so many of our own personal struggles, disappointments and bereavement and to remember how, through it all, ‘He has been so good to us.’

So keep focused in the right place (on God) and keep doing what He has shown us to do. Make this a great year one day at a time.

(adapted from a devotional by Nicky Gumble: Bible in One Year)