One of the hard things for Christians to understand is when we face difficult times. If Yahweh is as loving as he says he is why is it that we go through some of the tings we go through? Why does he let my heart get broken? Why can't I find a job? Why can't I seem to pay my bills? Why does everything always seem to be so hard? Sometimes we would rather see Yahweh as a Santa Claus than as a father.
Father's have the responsibility to raise their children by training them for life and eternity. We are not babysitters who just have to entertain the kids until someone else takes them off our hands. We have to train them the best we can so that when they move out on their own they are as prepared as possible to deal with the world. It means we cannot raise spoiled children and there is a lot of hard lessons in the training. But it is better to learn those lessons in the protection of a loving family than alone in a cruel world. Our heavenly Father has the same responsibility, only his preparation and training is for our eternity.
Hebrews 12 has a lot to say on this subject:
Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. (Hebrews 12:7-8)
Our fathers here disciplined us as best they knew how, not because they were cruel, but so that we would grow up right and ready for the world. How much better is our heavenly Father's discipline:
They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. (vs. 10-11)
We see a perfect example of Yahweh's correcting and training techniques with Israel, when he brought them out of Egypt. Everything they went through was arranged and it was for their benefit even though it seemed like hardship at the time:
And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. (Deuteronomy 8:2)
The purpose was to humble them, making them dependent on him, and to test them, to see if they would obey because obedience would be important for the centuries ahead. And this is how he trained them and how he provided:
So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. Your garments did not wear out on you, nor did your foot swell these forty years. You should know in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chastens you. (vs. 3-5)
They faced some hard lessons but the generation that left the desert was the most powerful, obedient, and dedicated generation of Israelites who ever lived. Those hardships brought them into an incredible relationship with Yahweh that allowed them to have confidence to defeat nations through their obedience, living by every word that proceeded from the mouth of the LORD. This is exactly where the LORD wants us to be: dependent, obedient and powerful. But it takes training and discipline.
Yahweh has a purpose for everything we face and those things that we have caused by our own foolishness he will use for our benefit as well. Our part in everything we face is to face it in the joy of the Lord, with confidence, hope and trust. Our part is to listen and obey in love. No matter what it is you are in the midst of right now, be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified or discouraged because the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.
Showing posts with label hard times. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hard times. Show all posts
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Sunday, January 5, 2014
Purpose In The Dark Days
Ever wonder why it took ten plagues to rescue Israel from Egypt? There must have been a more efficient way of doing it. Why didn't God just start with the last plague? Why didn't he just strike them all blind and let Israel simply walk out? There had to have been a faster way of doing it. Except fast is not always best. God is not above getting a bit messy to bring about his purpose. We find the reasons in Scripture:
And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch out My hand on Egypt and bring out the children of Israel from among them. (Exodus 7:5)
What God was doing was leaving a lasting imprint on the world. Even though there were those who worshipped him they did so without knowing him because God had yet to make himself known. There were those who knew of him because they saw his imprint all around them but they did not actually know him. Even Abraham, Isaac and Jacob did not know him as he was about to make himself known to Israel, Egypt and the rest of the world. God was rescuing his people in a way that no one could claim to have rescued them but God.
But indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth. (Exodus 9:16)
No one had ever witnessed what was being witnessed in Egypt. No one had experienced God in this way. He was showing both his might and his compassion. He was revealing that he is the God of the covenant, that he keeps his promises. He was announcing that it was time for his name to be declared in all the earth.
... that you may tell in the hearing of your son and your son’s son the mighty things I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have done among them, that you may know that I am the Lord. (Exodus 10:2)
God chose this harder way of doing things to entrench into the memory of his people what he had done for them. He wanted them to remember it was he who rescued them by the might of his hand. He wanted them to remember for generations to come that he had selected them to be the nation he would glorify himself through. He wanted them to remember that he keeps his promises. He wanted them remember his covenant with Abraham. He wanted them to remember. And they did.
All through Scriptures God's people remembered this particular moment in time. They remembered this act of love. They remembered that he is the God of the impossible. They called upon this moment every time things looked impossible for them. They remembered and were encouraged in their trust. They trusted because of what God had done in the past.
Now let's consider our own lives and our questions of why God didn't chose a different way, an easier way for us? Sure, he could have rescued us any way that he wanted and he chose the way he wanted. In those difficult days he was giving to us a testimony that we would lean on during other dark days. He was reminding us that he alone is our rescuer. He wanted no one else to take the credit for what he was doing. He is jealous about his relationship with you and he was using that moment to glorify himself through you so that everyone who looked to you would see what he was doing.
As we walk with him through this life he has given us, we must always keep in mind, it is about more than just us. We need to have a bigger picture of things to understand that God uses every opportunity to glorify himself through us for the benefit of others. Sometimes this means taking a longer route to our destination. It's not about ease or efficiency; it is about the Father's will and purpose through us. Rejoice, for God is good all the time.
And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch out My hand on Egypt and bring out the children of Israel from among them. (Exodus 7:5)
What God was doing was leaving a lasting imprint on the world. Even though there were those who worshipped him they did so without knowing him because God had yet to make himself known. There were those who knew of him because they saw his imprint all around them but they did not actually know him. Even Abraham, Isaac and Jacob did not know him as he was about to make himself known to Israel, Egypt and the rest of the world. God was rescuing his people in a way that no one could claim to have rescued them but God.
But indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth. (Exodus 9:16)
No one had ever witnessed what was being witnessed in Egypt. No one had experienced God in this way. He was showing both his might and his compassion. He was revealing that he is the God of the covenant, that he keeps his promises. He was announcing that it was time for his name to be declared in all the earth.
... that you may tell in the hearing of your son and your son’s son the mighty things I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have done among them, that you may know that I am the Lord. (Exodus 10:2)
God chose this harder way of doing things to entrench into the memory of his people what he had done for them. He wanted them to remember it was he who rescued them by the might of his hand. He wanted them to remember for generations to come that he had selected them to be the nation he would glorify himself through. He wanted them to remember that he keeps his promises. He wanted them remember his covenant with Abraham. He wanted them to remember. And they did.
All through Scriptures God's people remembered this particular moment in time. They remembered this act of love. They remembered that he is the God of the impossible. They called upon this moment every time things looked impossible for them. They remembered and were encouraged in their trust. They trusted because of what God had done in the past.
Now let's consider our own lives and our questions of why God didn't chose a different way, an easier way for us? Sure, he could have rescued us any way that he wanted and he chose the way he wanted. In those difficult days he was giving to us a testimony that we would lean on during other dark days. He was reminding us that he alone is our rescuer. He wanted no one else to take the credit for what he was doing. He is jealous about his relationship with you and he was using that moment to glorify himself through you so that everyone who looked to you would see what he was doing.
As we walk with him through this life he has given us, we must always keep in mind, it is about more than just us. We need to have a bigger picture of things to understand that God uses every opportunity to glorify himself through us for the benefit of others. Sometimes this means taking a longer route to our destination. It's not about ease or efficiency; it is about the Father's will and purpose through us. Rejoice, for God is good all the time.
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