Joy in Hard Times
Nobody enjoys suffering. It’s hard to find joy in the midst of trials or difficult seasons—it’s much easier to feel sadness or misery.
That’s why Paul’s encouragement in Romans 5 may sound contradictory. Paul was writing this to the church in Rome experiencing suffering from ungodly rulers, and yet he encourages them to rejoice in their suffering.
It wasn’t enough to just endure suffering—he tells them to have joy. Paul knew that it wasn’t natural to be joyful in hard times, but through the work of Jesus, Christians have peace with God and access to faith (Romans 5:1-2). Faith allows us to hold onto the hope that suffering isn’t the end of our story.
Because we know that God works within our difficult situations, we can have patience and perseverance for God to complete His work. Perseverance refines our character. As we wait on God, we become people who look more like Jesus, and our trust in God grows stronger. This increases hope within us.
It’s not easy to have hope when you're suffering. But as we trust in God, we are strengthened to continue to endure. When we look at suffering from God’s perspective, we begin to realize that He is working to bring glory to Himself in every situation.
God has shown us through the Holy Spirit that He loves us. He suffered and gave Himself for us so that we could have a relationship with Him, and He will continue to give us everything we need to live a life that honors Him.
So consider how God is working in your life, even through difficult seasons. Think about the ways God has poured His love into you through the Holy Spirit. Ask Him for strength to persevere, and let that perseverance develop into a strong character that hopes and trusts in God even in hard times. And when persevering gets difficult, hold onto this truth: God has given everything for you, and He will never leave your side.
“And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”Romans 5:3-5 NKJV
Prayer: God, You are well-acquainted with my struggles, and they don’t scare or shock you. Instead, You seem to view them as opportunities to strengthen me and show off Your glory through me. So today, I choose to bring my struggles to You. I will rejoice even as I encounter hard times—because I know You are refining me and giving me the strength to endure. Thank You! In Jesus’s name, Amen.
Note after sharing the devotional: the first line of this devotional jumped out at me. To say that “Nobody enjoys suffering” would be an understatement. It took me a whole day to come back to the devotional and become willing to receive it. Reflecting on more layers of my life as I continue to go through things that I need and seek to forgive, I initially found this pill too bitter to swallow.
But then I looked at the two prompts that were tucked in toward the end of the devotional:
Regarding the first bullet point, I still remember the very first time God put this verse in my lap. I was in my 20s and was going through a season of heartbreak. I absolutely did not understand what was happening, let alone why, and I remember this passage as medicine for my soul. It was also a nice tie in to a similar scripture that I had been given about a year prior, when I was in between jobs and in a sort of desperate situation:
But then I looked at the two prompts that were tucked in toward the end of the devotional:
- Reflection: consider how God is working in your life—even through difficult seasons. How have you seen Him show up?
- Share your faith: today, praise God out loud for who He is. Thank Him for what He has done. And worship Him for all that he’s still planning to do!
Regarding the first bullet point, I still remember the very first time God put this verse in my lap. I was in my 20s and was going through a season of heartbreak. I absolutely did not understand what was happening, let alone why, and I remember this passage as medicine for my soul. It was also a nice tie in to a similar scripture that I had been given about a year prior, when I was in between jobs and in a sort of desperate situation:
“My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”James 1:2-4 NKJV
Looking at it now, that section is titled “profiting from trials.” Just like Philippians 4:8 for how to train one’s mind for renewal, the above passage from James 1 is also protocol for going through hard times. It, along with Romans 5, tells us what we can expect. From here, it’s a faith step.
The other part of what God wanted to impart to me during the aforementioned season of heartbreak was a reminder about the foundational truth of Christ suffering, death, and resurrection that underpins His command about enduring trials and tribulations:
“For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”Romans 5:6-8 NKJV
As for the season in which I was in between jobs and in a desperate situation, God brought me back home to reset everything and get me plugged in back to a real church. Everything since then has flowed from that.
And as for enduring the season of heartbreak, God led me to a men’s Bible study group that served as a launching pad for deeper healing, which occurred over the next decade. (I eventually met my wife at the end of that decade!)
So, as for the second bullet point, to praise and worship God, and to rejoice, I do think God for what he has done. He gave me the Evanston Vineyard. He gave me “the Place.” He brought in my life friends and mentors and “pseudo family” even. He since also brought me a wife, and for the two of us, independent living. So I have no doubt that He will give me a job, somewhere, somehow, that will help continue to take care of both my wife and me. Whether it’s a lengthy extension with my current job or a new landing spot, each job is a provision from him as long as I follow the Holy Spirit’s leading. Praise God forevermore!
No comments:
Post a Comment