Month: August 2024

I think you will agree that facing trials, or life’s issues is daunting and difficult. But what if I told you that in doing so builds character and we just might be on the right path that God wants us to be. I have faced so many trials. As you know, my latest is the divorce. However, before that transition, God spoke to me in a dream, years ago, that told me to hold on to Jesus, because beasts will come out and try to take me down (more on that later). As I weakened over the years, my husband decided that he no longer wanted me. But my faith and hope has always been in Jesus. He is my calm in the storm.

by the end of this series, you will have a better understanding of what a trial is, what to do in the midst of it and how to overcome, even when all seems hopeless, because there is hope in Jesus Christ. You will overcome your trial with love, holy love. And it will be your path to glory.

 What are trials?

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, trials have many definitions, but the one we will use for the context of this post is this: “a test of faith, patience, or stamina through subjection to suffering or temptation” (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trial). The bible mentions trials at least twelve times (depending on the version). Among their many names are tests, tribulations, struggles, ordeals, strife, and so on. The other variations of trials are mentioned over seven hundred seventy times. Wow! There must be a reason God has this in the Word.

We are going to dig into this topic by scripture, verse by verse, piece by piece. We have a lot to unravel, so let’s search it out.

Why are they important?

Trials make us stronger. It may not seem like it now, because it is painful. At the end of it, you will see what God was doing. Sometimes, we create our own trials by our choices. Sometimes, it wasn’t our fault. But either way, God will use that situation to make you stronger, so that He receives the glory.

Our scriptures for this series are Psalms 37 and 57, Luke 12:49-53, Romans 5:3-5 and 1 Peter 2:18-25:

• Psalm 37: Understanding Trials: The Purpose Behind the Pain​​.
• Psalm 57: Embracing Mercy and Trust in God’s Unfailing Love​​.
• Luke 12:49-53: Bridging the Gap: Finding Common Ground Amidst Spiritual Divisions.
• Romans 5:3-5: Nurturing a Deeper Love for God in Times of Trial and Triumph.
• 1 Peter 2:18-25: Living for Righteousness: A Commitment to Integrity and Faith.

Logically, we all want to throw in the towel and give up. Or we want to fight as hard as we can physically and verbally. We cry out to God, ‘Why God? Why?” Or we may ask where God is. What did I do to deserve this? Life just is not fair, because we all want things to go our way.

But, in God’s grand scheme, that is not how it works. We all must face adversity and challenges. It is all about how we deal with them that will make us stronger. It is in the pain that we see God and His miracles. Today, we will focus on Psalm 37.

Understanding Trials: The Purpose Behind the Pain

Psalm 37 The Heritage of the Righteous and the Calamity of the Wicked A Psalm of David.

1 Do not fret because of evildoers, Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. 2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb. 3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. 4 Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass. 6 He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, And your justice as the noonday.

7 Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. 8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret—it only causes harm. 9 For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the LORD, They shall inherit the earth. 10 For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; Indeed, you will look carefully for his place, But it shall be no more. 11 But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

12 The wicked plots against the just, And gnashes at him with his teeth. 13 The Lord laughs at him, For He sees that his day is coming. 14 The wicked have drawn the sword And have bent their bow, To cast down the poor and needy, To slay those who are of upright conduct. 15 Their sword shall enter their own heart, And their bows shall be broken. 16 A little that a righteous man has Is better than the riches of many wicked. 17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, But the LORD upholds the righteous. 18 The LORD knows the days of the upright, And their inheritance shall be forever. 19 They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.

20 But the wicked shall perish; And the enemies of the LORD, Like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke they shall vanish away. 21 The wicked borrows and does not repay, But the righteous shows mercy and gives. 22 For those blessed by Him shall inherit the earth, But those cursed by Him shall be cut off. 23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, And He delights in his way. 24 Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the LORD upholds him with His hand. 25 I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread.

26 He is ever merciful, and lends; And his descendants are blessed. 27 Depart from evil, and do good; And dwell forevermore. 28 For the LORD loves justice, And does not forsake His saints; They are preserved forever, But the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off. 29 The righteous shall inherit the land, And dwell in it forever. 30 The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom, And his tongue talks of justice. 31 The law of his God is in his heart; None of his steps shall slide. 32 The wicked watches the righteous, And seeks to slay him.

33 The LORD will not leave him in his hand, Nor condemn him when he is judged. 34 Wait on the LORD, And keep His way, And He shall exalt you to inherit the land; When the wicked are cut off, you shall see it. 35 I have seen the wicked in great power, And spreading himself like a native green tree. 36 Yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more; Indeed I sought him, but he could not be found. 37 Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright; For the future of that man is peace. 38 But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; The future of the wicked shall be cut off. 39 But the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; He is their strength in the time of trouble. 40 And the LORD shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, And save them, Because they trust in Him.

This is a large scripture, but we are going to break it apart to understand it fully. Let’s start in verses one through six: 1 Do not fret because of evildoers, Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. 2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb. 3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. 4 Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass. 6 He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, And your justice as the noonday.

Things happen.  People betray us. That includes family (there is a scripture on this too. We will dig deep into this later in the series). If they are doing well, while you are trying to hang on, don’t take it to heart. They may think they are prospering, but God has another plan for you and for them.

God does not like to see His children hurt and suffering. But, at the same time, we must grow through the pain and suffering. We can learn some valuable lessons within ourselves when we are pushed into difficulty. But those that are hurting us will have to deal with their consequences as well. We may not see it at the moment. This is a war zone in the spiritual realm, and we cannot see what is happening. But trust God.

We must trust God and do what is right. stay where you are and nourish yourself on His dependability. Trust. Even when it may be hard.

If you are blaming God and can’t seem to trust Him, remember, He is Truth, and Life. He is Love. When we are in the middle of this hardship, it can be difficult to believe there is light at the end of this tunnel. Do good anyway. Stay prayed up. Study His Word. Praying and studying what He says feeds your soul, which will also bring unnatural peace.

Verse four says to Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. How can we be delighted in this tragedy? Because we don’t delight in the pain per se (although we can, see the New Testament), but we delight in God’s love, grace, and mercy. If we stay in His presence, He will give us our hearts’ desires. Now, I know God is not a genie, he doesn’t give us piles of gold and the supermodel on the cover the magazine. But, if you are praying, earnestly, then He will make it happen, so long as it glorifies Him.

We still have a lot to uncover over the next few weeks. Study this scripture and we will meet again next week.

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Welcome back! Thanks for joining us on the final journey into suffering. This has such a negative connotation, but it is such a deep study. I want you to have a better grasp of this term and what we are supposed to do. Let us jump in.

In 2Timothy 2:1-3, it says: 1 You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 3 You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

While we face these hardships, we must be strong in the grace of Jesus. We are to hold on to His promises because He will never fail us and will never let go. Stay faithful, like a mustard seed, to teach others through suffering. To go through these trials, shows that we are good and faithful soldiers in the Army of Christ.

Heading 3: What is Happening?

As we see in all of this, suffering does not feel or look good, and it can destroy us if we are not careful. But we need to remember it is God preparing us. Preparing for what is to come so we can manage harder situations better. It can also be an example to others, and it can be a testing of our faith.

In this preparation, I am reminded of Psalm 23 – 1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. 3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.

 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever.

This Psalm tells me to be at peace. David starts out stating that God is our Shepherd, we do not need to want for anything, and He makes us lay down in green pastures and leads us beside still waters. Imagine, a green field, with a peaceful river or brook nearby. The sweet, quiet sound of birds chirping, a gentle breeze and sound of water moving. God says, you are weary from your suffering, just relax here and rest in my presence, I will take care of everything for you.

Ini this pasture, He restores your soul, gives you peace. You take His hand, and He leads you down the right path, the path of righteousness. This is where, in your prayer and reading time, stay in his presence, He will guide you where you need to go.

We are going to walk in the valley of the shadow of death. It does not necessarily mean we are dying, per se, it just means we are going through a dark or rough patch in our lives right now. But do not fear, because God is walking it with us. God uses His powers to protect us from anything harmful and/or demonic from coming our way, which is also comforting, because we really do not have to do anything but rest in Him.

Notice further in this Psalm. I see this as God mocking the enemy because David says … ‘You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.’ I see this as God saying, ‘if you want to hurt, discredit, and keep my children from making it to Heaven, see what I will do. I will prepare a table, full of good things for my children, because you cannot take it from them no matter what. It continues stating that God will anoint our heads with oil and our cup will run over.

What does anointing our heads mean? This was a task assigned by the priests or prophets and it is a sign that when we are anointed, we belong to God, and we are committed to Him. So, I imagine a banquet table with a beautiful spread of delicious foods and desserts, while God is anointing us in the presence of the enemies and then overflowing our cups (which represent our lives) with His blessings, in order to show them that we are not meant to be messed with, because no matter what they say, God has us in the palm of His hands and He won’t let go of us and He will provide everything we need.

This Psalm ends, praising God for His goodness and mercy, which follows us throughout our lives, and we will be in God’s House forever. In this preparation, God sees our suffering, He makes us rest, wait on Him to provide what we need, and he takes care of our enemies. When He does this, He pours out His blessings, overflowing blessings, so that we can be a witness and help others in a comparable situation.

Heading 4: What are We Supposed to do During this Suffering?

Psalm 71:18-24 – 18 Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, do not forsake me, Until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to everyone who is to come. 19 Also Your righteousness, O God, is very high, You who have done great things; O God, who is like You? 20 You, who have shown me great and severe troubles, Shall revive me again, And bring me up again from the depths of the earth. 21 You shall increase my greatness, And comfort me on every side.

 22 Also with the lute I will praise You—And Your faithfulness, O my God! To You I will sing with the harp, O Holy One of Israel. 23 My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to You, And my soul, which You have redeemed. 24 My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long; For they are confounded, For they are brought to shame Who seek my hurt.

When we are in the middle of suffering, we are not to lose ourselves in the pain. Cry out to God, for He will not forsake you. To understand a bit better, forsake means to renounce or turn away from entirely (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forsake). Starting in verse seventeen, David is saying that while he is old, he is asking God not to turn away from him, because he wants to declare God’s strength and power to everyone, including the next generation. He wants to lift up and brag on the things God can do. He continues to praise God, speaking of His righteousness and how High He is, that there is no one and nothing greater than God.

God has shown David great and severe troubles (sufferings), but that God can revive him again from the depths of the earth (pit). God can increase greatness in us and comfort us on every side of the situation. Sing praises with words and instruments to God, in His faithfulness and righteousness, because He has redeemed us. Brag on God’s righteousness, because the enemies are confused and brought to shame who seek to hurt God’s children.

This is all a reassurance that in our suffering, we are to praise and worship God, for His goodness and righteousness. The more we sing praises to Him, the more the enemy will suffer. God is our comforter, and He will not turn away from us.

Heading 5: What Happens After?

Psalm 5:12 – 12 For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous; With favor You will surround him as with a shield. God will bless the righteous. He will give favor and surround His soldier with a shield.

This is one of many scriptures that shows God’s protection with a shield. Another famous scripture is Ephesians 6:16, it describes this protection as the shield of faith: above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.

The shield is meant to protect us from the harm of the enemy. That no matter what our situation looks like, no matter how hard it is, we must trust God, because He is protecting us. Who knows, maybe what we see in our suffering is just a mild scrape compared to what it would be if we did not believe that God was protecting us, and that shield was off. If that piece of armor was not protecting us, it could be an unstoppable bleeding gash that would render us unable to live, mentally and spiritually.

Heading 6: Summary and Close with prayer

Wow! That was a lot to unpack. Suffering is hard, and it is a blessing. Again, we experience this agony in many ways, and we all have different temperaments. It is difficult for everyone. We must stay in righteousness, to do the right thing during this time. This agony brings spiritual happiness, but it can also bring fear, if we do not sanctify ourselves in God, which will cause us to let go of the pain. God is our Comforter, and we are God’s light in this world, we are to be examples on this earth.

When we are in discomfort, we are to do this for God’s goodness, and not in evil, or bad choices. We must stay in prayer and meditate on God’s Word daily, so that we have the tools to fight in this spiritual battle. Remember, this misery can also be a test, from Satan, to trick us to blame and curse God. But to combat this, we must have faith and trust God. This misfortune is a hardship, but we need to rest in God’s lap and be at peace, because He will not leave us, He is our protector. Praise and Worship Him, with words, prayer, or music. Praise Him because it is a remarkable thing to suffer for God.

My prayer to you: Dear God, please help everyone today that is suffering, no matter what it is. Please give them peace and wisdom as they battle each day. I ask in Jesus’ name, that all these readers become stronger in their walk with you Lord, and that they become the beacons of light that we are all called to be.

Thank you, Father, for healing their iniquities and helping them to understand that you are a loving Father that wants them to be at peace and rest in You.

In Jesus Name, Amen.

Thank you everyone for reading this series. I hope that it has enlightened you and given you a better understanding of God’s word. Look for the next topic to be posted soon: The Power of Perseverance: Conquering Christian Trials with Hope

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