by David Brenneman
Life Principle 29: We learn more in our valley experiences than on our mountaintops.
Adversity, anguish, trials, tribulations, and heartaches operate as lessons in the school of experience. They bring us to a place of new insight and understanding. They can alter our perceptions of the world, our views of God, and lead us to change our behaviors. The Lord, of course, is the ultimate Teacher. He’s the One to whom we must look for the meaning of any lesson related to adversity.
God allows adversity for at least three reasons:
1. To Get Our Attention
The Lord uses a wide variety of methods to gain our attention when necessary—and adversity is one of them. Don’t delay in responding to the Lord when He moves to get your attention. Respond quickly and humbly. Hear what He has to say to you.
2. For Examination
At times, God allows adversity to motivate us to self-examination. The winds of adversity blow away the surface issues and force us to cope with things on a deeper level. Nothing has the ability to drive us closer to God than tribulation. It removes the cloak of denial and reveals who we really are, as well as what we believe about God, His deity, and faithfulness.
Paul encouraged the Corinthians, “A man must examine himself” (1 Cor. 11:28). In other words, “Take a straight forward look inside and discover what’s driving, motivating, and enticing you.” If it’s anything but God, then it’s not right. He needs to be your motivating factor at every turn in life.
3. To Change Behavior
It isn’t enough that God desires to get our attention or encourage us to take a truthful look at our lives. We must also allow His Spirit to have free access to every area. Unless we change our response and behavior, we’ll never benefit from adversity or grow as a result of it. God provides a challenge, and we have an opportunity to obey or disobey Him. The choice is ours, and the consequences that come belong to us as well.
If you’re willing to allow God to surface the inner rubbish of your life—and if you’re willing to change what needs to be changed—you’ll emerge from adversity closer to Christ, more mature as His child, and with far greater potential to reflect the love of God to the world around you.
- Life Principle Devotional Dr. Charles Stanley
If looked at from a different perspective we see that much of the Bible is written from the valley's of life of most writing them. A great deal of the book of Psalms is of what was going on in David's heart and life while under various trials and difficulties.
Last night it wasn't too bad outside and I had completed my studies for the evening so I went outside for a short walk around our property. I was reminded of that day several years ago when our realtor and I had finished seeing this place. I remember the prayer that I prayed in the same spot I was standing last night. That if He wanted us living here, He would have to make it all happen. The next words that came out of my mouth at that time was that we would take it.
Never could I have thought the days in which I find myself right now would be happening. I read something last night in a short video that said that there are those that God removes from your life for a reason. It wasn't you being removed from theirs. That was very painful but true. There's people there whom I really liked working with but for His reasons they were removed from my day-to-day life.
Looking ahead there's something more for me to be doing somewhere else that them being in my life would cause me to miss.
God's perspective isn't our perspective. We look at the cross for hope in salvation through Jesus Christ. When approaching the cross Jesus prayed that if it be possible that the Father would take that suffering away, but not His will but the Father’s be done.
We see taking up our own cross as a singular burden. Jesus sees it as freedom for us.
We see the Spirit having free reign of our lives as something to be nervous about. We get anxious about what He might ask us to do.
The Spirit sees the workmanship of Christ Jesus in us and works in us to bring about more growth in Christ.
Many people won't come to Christ for salvation because of the fears of the unknown concerning that one aspect of salvation...the unknown of what God might call them to do.
I am not the same person I was even several months ago let alone years ago. The truth is neither are you. Jesus is never going to leave us as He found us. We are very much those who live in denial for most of our lives concerning how life really is to be lived. It can't possibly be what the Spirit is directing us towards because we can't see how it could possibly work. Then, the Spirit does what only God can do, and we find ourselves on the other side of what happened and maybe a little wiser for the situation.
What God does allows, and take that completely to heart, ALLOWS to happen in our lives is always going to be for our good and His glory.
Our understanding of the why's behind these things is inconsequential. It's unnecessary. Not required for our obedience.
As Peter was told after Jesus reinstated him, you follow Me!
We also read that what Jesus wants is obedience not sacrifice.
We can wallow in despair or we can keep moving. I for one know that I must keep moving. Proverbs 16:9 says that that the mind of man plans his ways but the Lord directs his steps. He can't direct feet that aren't moving.
I can be intentional in my relationship with Jesus and He will keep His promise to take care of my life. So can you.
You need to drop your excuses for not living a fully devoted life in Christ. I preached a sermon once asking the question are you a quitter? Have you quit trying to live your life your way?
Adversity is a part of proper discipline to change a behavior or activity. Without the types of things involved there would be no adversities in a training obstacle course.
You were never meant to come to Christ and be a stick in the mud until you die. You were to grow up in all aspects of Jesus Christ. To be firmly rooted in Christ. To be a worker in His fields. It takes training in righteousness to accomplish His purpose in you and I.
As a song says...it's time to lay our all on the altar of Jesus Christ.
All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.
New American Standard Bible
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