Thought 225
Hard Times produce a
stronger Christian
“My brethren, count it all joy when ye
fall into divers temptations;
Knowing this, that the trying of your
faith worketh patience.
But let patience have her perfect work,
that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”
James 1:2-4 KJV
We all must
go through storms so that our roots will go deeper, so that our foundation will
be shown for what it really is. It is nearly impossible to grow if everything
is always easy. Was learning to read easy for you? Was learning to drive easy
or a little bit challenging?
When we prepare to learn something that we
don’t know anything about, we willingly subject ourselves to hard times and
work. Perseverance gets us through. It is the same in our spiritual lives: when
the seasons of Euroclydon (Acts 27:14) attack us, it is easy to want to give
up, to doubt, to fear; but we must hold on like Job:
“Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him. . . .” Job 13:15 KJV
Job was willing to
continue living for God even though he didn’t understand why all the horrible
trials he was going through were happening, why God wasn’t speaking, and why the
dearest person in the world to him, his wife, was telling him to give up and
die by cursing the God who created him. Job must have felt an enormous inner
attack by Satan; yet we see him hold on to trusting in God.
Every Christian will go through hard times
because it is part of the Christian life. Jesus was mocked, ridiculed, persecuted,
and killed, likewise His followers have been beaten, made fun of, belittled,
killed, and persecuted throughout history. Take courage dear brothers and
sisters, hard times are a season of life. Even though it seems too hard to bear
the Lord has promised He will not let us go through more than we can bear:
“There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to
man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye
are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may
be able to bear it.”
1 Corinthians 10:13
KJV
