Weak-ened

This week has been quite challenging for many of my friends. I have also encoutered my fair share of spiritual opposition but nothing I faced came close to the level of trial that some special people have gone through. As much as we may be happy for the weekend as a sign of an end to this week, the situations in their lives may not be following our regular calendar and may insist well into the next days, weeks, months or even (heaven forbid) years. We don’t get to choose the situations in our lives in which we need an enormous infusion of God’s grace, and some of us would prefer death instead of having to endure some things.

Sometimes we wonder how close God really is to us. Sometimes we feel as though He is far away in the very moments we wish He would be closest to us. The concept of tough love and punishment are not things we want to hear at such times. We especially get angered by sentiments that try to remind us of overused verses that would be expected to encourage us at these times. We want something tangible, solutions we can see, touch and feel. We demand instant release from our suffering and anything else seems harsh and ungodly. How does God work His salvation in our lives in the hard times?

Elijah had his moments at the summit of despair. He would have gladly taken death at the hands of God rather than at Jezebel’s hands. He didn’t want to take His own life and wished God would do it for Him (1 Kings 19:1-21). If God answered such prayers from His children, so many of us would already be gone. In His wisdom and grace, He overlooks such prayer requests and continues to be our cover in times of great distress. Whatever you are going through is important but may be an unnecessary result of your actions. Feeling guilty about what brought you there won’t help much. Now that you are in that situation, how can you best allow God to make a way of escape for you from it? How can you best encourage yourself in God so that His word carries you through and out of that valley of the shadow of death. Remember that you are to walk through the valley of the shadow of death, not set camp in it. 

You will make it. You will bear some scars that will remind you of this particular season in your life, but Jacob also bore a limp after his wrestling encounter, and still went on to be remembered as Israel. The scar is a souvenir of the experiences you are going through, and in a strange way reminds you of the victory you have in God. Jesus still bore the marks of the nail in His pierced hands even after He had conquered death, hell and the grave. Your scar is your testimony. You will make it, and your testimony will encourage those who will be going through similar things in future. Be strong and of good courage.