Continuing Michael's message: One night that pastor read from
Hebrews 12 that the Lord disciplines every child He loves. He heard that still, small voice of God revealing to him, "You know how to be an All Star in life, but you don't know how to
sit on the bench. Cheer for the guy ahead of you to encourage him and to cheer
for his success. On the bench of life, God will build His character in
you." A man and woman of God is built through the trials and
tribulations of life. Oswald Chambers' devotional "My Utmost for His
Highest" is about deep water Christianity. He is our life preserver
in the deep water. On November 1, the devotional is from 1
Corinthians 6:19 that says, "You
are not your own." God will break up the private lives of His
saints (those who have been sanctified in Christ) and will make them a
thoroughfare for the world to tread upon. As the apostle Paul said, we are God's epistles, his love letters
known and read of all men.
The testing of our faith
works patience according to Romans 5. No human can stand
being a thoroughfare for the world to tread unless his strength is in his Lord
Jesus Christ. According to Dietrich Bonhoeffer, when Jesus bids us come, he bids us come and die. We must die to
self in order to live for Him. A trial will be the greatest tragedy of your
lives or this will be your finest hour. Through the trials of life, He
will teach us that "Joy is not the absence of pain. Rather, joy is
the presence of the Lord."
When things happen over
which we have no control, we can either be a hindrance and a clog in God's
redemptive plan or we can be a part of His plan to redeem His people as
ambassadors of our Lord Jesus Christ. God gives us a choice through trials to
listen to the voice of the adversary or to trust in Him. Oswald Chambers
says that during times of trial and
tribulation, he will reach down to us with the grip of His Son's nailed pierced
hands. He'll say, "come unto me, arise and shine. Thank God for breaking our hearts for what
breaks His." The question is, "Are we more interested in our own
comfort or in the furtherance of the gospel?"
Therefore, thank God for
molding us and making us after His will. When we're gracefully broken,
He'll pick up the treads of our broken hearts and weave them together again
stronger. When we're tested and tried, we will be approved of God.
As Paul said, I press toward the mark of
the upward calling of God in Christ Jesus ... and when I have finished my
course, there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness that he has reserved
for all who love his appearing.
Through the fellowship of
His suffering, may we rise and shine, that we may ever live to the praise of
the glory of His grace!
Your brother in Christ,
Michael
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