A Closer Walk
Adversity. Hardship. Struggles. Hope. Faith. Discernment. Each of us has experienced adversity, hardship, and struggles. Life is not bashful when it comes to passing around these times. But if we also have hope, faith, and discernment life becomes somewhat more pleasant to deal with. As long as we don't do something stupid, we more or less have no control over what happens to us. Let's define what we mean by something stupid. If we are driving 90 miles per hour in a 45-mile-per-hour speed zone and a policeman pulls us over, was that a smart move on our part? When we receive the penalties for that can we correctly state that God is against us? The answer to both questions is obviously “No”.
So if we take care of the things we can take care of life is likely to be somewhat more “gentle” with us. Make sense? Then we are left dealing with legitimate adversity, hardship, and struggles. When these come then we as the children of God should have hope above all other peoples. “And he prayed to the LORD and said, 'Please LORD, was not this what I said while I was still in my own country? Therefore, in order to forestall this I fled to Tarshish, for I knew that Thou art a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning calamity,” Jonah 4:2 NASB. During times of hardship and struggle we can wrap ourselves in the grace and compassion of our Lord. Doing this may ease the intensity of the hardship or the struggle.
Employing our faith and putting it into action may also make life somewhat more “gentle”. There is a saying on a plaque in our home that states, “Faith makes things possible, not easy”. So we should remember what Jesus said, “Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me,” John 14:1 NASB. Reminding ourselves of who our God is, and the depth of His love for us should be very beneficial to us. “...for He Himself has said, 'I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU,' so that we confidently say, 'THE LORD IS MY HELPER, I WILL NOT BE AFRAID. WHAT SHALL MAN DO TO ME?' ''Hebrews 13:5-6 NASB.
When adversity and hardship come, and they likely will, relying on our hope in Christ and employing our faith and putting it into action could be very helpful to us. My own personal belief is that there is never anything wasted in the Kingdom of God. Every hardship, every struggle, every incident of adversity has a purpose. Why? “But now, O LORD, Thou art our Father, We are the clay, and Thou our potter; And all of us are the work of Thy hand,” Isaiah 64:8 NASB. “Know that the LORD Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture,” Psalm 100 NASB. So our God is our Heavenly Father and he is our potter. We are the clay that He works with to fashion into the vessel he desires us to become. We are the work of His hands. It is He who has made us; both inside the womb and after we left the womb. In other words, He is diligently working with us since both before and after we were born. And He continues to work on us throughout our lives. Because it is He who has made us and we have not made ourselves.
But we are the sheep of His pasture. “The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me. Thou dost prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; Thou hast anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows. Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever,” Psalm 23:1-6 NASB.
Our lives likely will consist of episodes of adversity, hardship, and struggles. Maybe even all at the same time. But our gracious and compassionate Lord has offered us hope, faith, and discernment. Why discernment? In order to help us separate the wheat from the chaff, and to discern what is important, what is urgent, what is necessary, and what is fluff. Important things are just that, important. The urgent things need to be toward or at the top of the priority list. The necessary things must be done even though we probably would rather be doing something else. The fluff? Well, ever had cotton candy? Enjoyable as a treat but completely and totally unnecessary and we certainly can't make a meal out of it. The fluff is things that while perhaps enjoyable could keep us from doing the important, the urgent, and the necessary even to our possible detriment.
It's good for us to remember that while life does have periods of adversity, hardship, and struggle our God has provided us with the hope that tomorrow will be a better day. The faith that at some point our Lord will lead us into those green pastures and beside the quiet waters. He also will offer the discernment to eliminate most of the fluff and to carry out those things that are important, urgent, and necessary. Notice it was not stated to eliminate all the fluff. A little treat is good occasionally for our attitude and outlook. Even in the midst of adversity, hardship, and struggle. Go ahead, find a little fluff, and enjoy.
“Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, There's just something about that name Master Savior Jesus; Like a fragrance after the rain. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Let all heaven and earth proclaim; Kings and kingdoms may all pass away, But there’s something about that name,” words and music by Bill (born 1936) and Gloria Gaither (born 1942). Both still serving and worshiping our Lord.