It’s all a Part of God’s Plan

     In life we can become discouraged and disheartened by all the matters of this life.  As we grow in Christ, these emotions and or responses to life events ought to be under biblical control.  We used to encourage one another with the phrase “WWJD,” (what would Jesus do).   Against what we may want to believe, we are intentionally given, even appointed, trials.  They are assigned and/ or allowed to produce a response that will glorify the Lord.  Jesus our Lord encourages us to not lose heart (Luke 18:1)  Cambridge dictionary defines “losing heart” as beliefs or thoughts that you will not be able to succeed and will not have the ability to stand in the midst of trouble.  The Lord has exhorted us, His children, to gain the perspective that life’s turbulences are nothing when compared to our exuberant end (the end of life on this side).   Eternal life in the Heavens with Jesus!  God desires that we have the kind of trust in Him that when trouble comes, we respond with trust.  Come what may, we will stay rooted in all that we know Jesus is for us, and that we will “..be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, bringing forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever He does shall prosper.” ( Ps. 1:3).

      Oh Lord, that we will stay the course and continue to remember all of the victory we have in Christ. For He has promised us He will never leave us nor forsake us.  We must stop believing we cannot succeed!  But you say, ‘Well, hey, I just lost my loved one, my job, my health, etc.’  Yes, you have certainly suffered a loss, so how can you succeed?  God’s Word gives light as to how we are to govern ourselves to prepare for what will come in this life; He sets us up for the win in all we may go through on this side of life.  God uses our experiences to mold us and shape us into the image of His Son, and thereby He is pleased.  What does a loss cause us to do?  Yes, it often causes us to seek the Lord intensely; we become aware immediately of how we are hemmed up to one Hope, one Strong Tower, one Refuge…and it is Jesus the Christ, our Lord!  Jesus wants us to know we need Him,  and we cannot succeed at anything without Him-- and guess what?  It’s all a part of His divine Plan.

PRAYER:  Lord, we thank You for growing us up and helping us to change our responses from what our enemy believes will break us.  You have shown Yourself strong in our lives and we want to bless You, for every day we want to look more like Christ.  Thank You!!  Lord, help us to remember and recall what You have promised and all that You have said for us to do during the blows of life.  We thank You that You will never leave us nor forsake us.  Help us to trust You more and more so as to ultimately please and glorify You.  In Jesus’ Name-Amen!
by Lisa Williams