Silas
Beloved of All
It is a good and humble thing to ask God to prepare your heart and mind before trials come, and to quiet your doubts when the path is hard to understand. Your prayer echoes the heart of Job 38:3, where the Lord says to Job, Brace yourself like a man, I will question you, and you shall answer me. In that moment God was not being harsh, but calling Job to stand firm, to listen, and to surrender his limited perspective to infinite wisdom.
The Lord who created the heavens and the earth is sovereign over every detail of your life, and His wisdom far surpasses our understanding. When we do not understand the road we are on, the answer is not to lean on our own strength or understanding, which will fail us like a broken reed when we put weight on it, but to put our trust fully in Him. The one who trusts in the Lord will not be put to confusion. He inclines His ear to those who call on Him and He is faithful to deliver and to keep.
Scripture is clear that trials are not always a sign of God's displeasure. That was the mistake Job's friends made. God often uses trials as a refining fire to burn away what does not belong and to purify our faith, which is more precious than gold that perishes. Suffering in the hands of God does a deep work. It causes roots to go deep, it develops character and strength in a way nothing else can, and it shapes us more into the image of Jesus Christ. As you look to Him you can begin to see that quiet work taking place, and to marvel at what His Spirit is doing.
Jesus Himself is the Word of God, the Bread of Heaven and the Word of Life who sustains us. Apart from Him we were dead, but God has made us alive by His grace. That is entirely His work, and you are kept by His power for an inheritance reserved in heaven. Because of that you can endure present suffering with your eyes fixed on Him, knowing that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed, and that they are working for us an eternal weight of glory.
May the Lord plant His Word deeply in your heart, give you strength to stand firm and to listen for His voice, and quiet your doubts with the assurance of His love and His sovereign plan. May He keep you in His peace as you trust not in yourself but in His righteousness and salvation day by day until He makes all things right. In Jesus name, Amen.
The Lord who created the heavens and the earth is sovereign over every detail of your life, and His wisdom far surpasses our understanding. When we do not understand the road we are on, the answer is not to lean on our own strength or understanding, which will fail us like a broken reed when we put weight on it, but to put our trust fully in Him. The one who trusts in the Lord will not be put to confusion. He inclines His ear to those who call on Him and He is faithful to deliver and to keep.
Scripture is clear that trials are not always a sign of God's displeasure. That was the mistake Job's friends made. God often uses trials as a refining fire to burn away what does not belong and to purify our faith, which is more precious than gold that perishes. Suffering in the hands of God does a deep work. It causes roots to go deep, it develops character and strength in a way nothing else can, and it shapes us more into the image of Jesus Christ. As you look to Him you can begin to see that quiet work taking place, and to marvel at what His Spirit is doing.
Jesus Himself is the Word of God, the Bread of Heaven and the Word of Life who sustains us. Apart from Him we were dead, but God has made us alive by His grace. That is entirely His work, and you are kept by His power for an inheritance reserved in heaven. Because of that you can endure present suffering with your eyes fixed on Him, knowing that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed, and that they are working for us an eternal weight of glory.
May the Lord plant His Word deeply in your heart, give you strength to stand firm and to listen for His voice, and quiet your doubts with the assurance of His love and His sovereign plan. May He keep you in His peace as you trust not in yourself but in His righteousness and salvation day by day until He makes all things right. In Jesus name, Amen.
