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DIFFICULTIES AND TRIALS IN LIFE

 

“No one said, or promised, that this life would be easy,” my parents taught me. Things come up over which we have no control; events take place that cause doubts and fears; the actions of men across the globe can and does have an impact on us here in the United States.

We know that the sin of Adam and Eve continues to impact us, and will continue to impact humans, until the Lord comes again. This is a part of life, and death. Our hearts break over the loss of loved ones; sickness and death are always lurking at our doors, and disappointment, pain and heartache touches every one of our lives. 

We cannot understand all the “whys,” but we do know that God is still in charge and in control. Hence, for the Christian God encourages us to look to him in all things, and trust not ourselves, “Trust in the LORD with all your hearts, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and He shall direct your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

The Lord stresses to Christians that we should not be afraid, but constantly trust in Him. In 2 Timothy 1:7 Paul wrote, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” Satan is the source of fear. We fear (reverence) God yet are afraid we will never be good enough for him. We worry if we will be accepted by him, even though HE promises to forgive us and be with us (1 John 1:7-9). We worry about bills. . . we worry about the future. . .we worry about our health. . . and we worry about dying. 

Why do we spend so much time worrying, when God stressed through his Son that we should not worry? (Matthew 6:25-33). Is it because we lack faith in God? Do we struggle to believe that he is there? Does this become acute when we are faced with things that are seemingly out of our control? 

Perhaps we worry, as the Israelites did in their journeys to Canaan, because the way is hard and we can’t see an end to it. Sometimes it may seem that being a Christian in a world that becomes increasingly hostile to it is not what we should do. But that is walking by sight, not by faith! Yes, this life is hard. We will be knocked down and trampled over; but the Christian keeps on getting back up and fighting another day. Why? Because this world is just a steppingstone to eternal glory.

Perhaps we fear because the task seems so hard. Let’s be honest, in a world that does not care about Christ or his word, it is harder to live the Christian life. In a world where man has the audacity to think he can solve his own problems, being a Christian and serving God seems so dated and out of touch with reality. Yet for the Christian, joy comes when we serve God and serve others as well. When I make myself a god and try to appease myself by worshipping myself, I will always be frustrated because I will never be satisfied. When I rest in God, and glorify him, then life has a purpose. I’m here for others, not me! I want others to go to heaven with me, not just my family and friends. 

And, when we see the world and the way it’s going, we look forward to going home to be with the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:17) or even leaving this world to be with Jesus (Philippians 1:27). We grow discouraged because it seems like it is taking forever for the Lord to come. As a kid, I could not wait for my earthly father to come home from Vietnam. When he did come home, it was early in the morning, and I met him at the door. My dad was home. 

As children of God, do you yearn for and look forward to the Lord coming back?

One last thought, and these ramblings will end – are we afraid to die? I know, it is something that we don’t really want to talk about, yet Paul, desired to “be with the Lord, which is far better.” (Philippians 1:21-24). For the child of God, death is not something to fear, but to look forward to, because then we will be with the Lord. (continued on page 3)                                                                                                                                    (continued from front)                                                    We talk a lot about heaven and going there, but it seems that we fear death and going there. Perhaps, just perhaps, this coronavirus may help us put things back in perspective. Meeting with the Lord and his saints, praying for and helping others, and things we have taken for granted, will help us to cherish the time we have, and not worry about what is to come. 

Many we put our faith in God – not in us! “Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, and does not respect the proud, nor such as turn to lies.” Psalms 40:4

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Worship 2:00pm

Wednesday
Bible Study  7:00pm

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1776 Clay Rd
Mableton, GA 30126

(770) 948-5119

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