You can listen to this post on Refresh Her Podcast.
It’s certainly not my desire in these posts to make light of church members, but I long to help the ministry woman who is dealing with difficult things in the ministry in which she is serving. It’s a real part of life and of the church to deal with painful issues. So let’s continue to answer the question, How can we endure when things get difficult?
Part one is here. Let’s continue our discussion about David who was running for his life from his son Absalom.
The storm that David was in caused him to praise God and rejoice in Who God is! He said in Psalm 63 :3 Because Thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise Thee.
If nothing else could make David have a heart of praise, thinking on His God did! People disappoint, but God’s lovingkindness is always turned towards us. Times of praise allow us to worship and love Him for Who He is! There may be times when we don’t see His face, but we must have faith in the truth that He is still there.
I heard the story of two parents who had a son that had the habit of running away from his mom and dad when they were in the mall. The little boy would get so caught up in all the excitement that he would run ahead away from them, keeping them on a constant hunt for him. They had talked and tried to make him understand the necessity of staying near, but to no avail.
One day the family went to the mall and the inevitable happened. The little boy ran ahead and away from his parents, spite their warning. At that time the father took his wife by the hand and led her with him where they stood behind a post. They had a view of their son and they kept an eye on him. They stood watching and waiting. Suddenly the little boy turned to speak to his parents and he could not see them. They watched as he began to search for them and then began to cry and be afraid. It was then that they stepped out to embrace him and comfort him. They explained to him that they were there all along, but they hid so they could teach him a lesson.
What’s the lesson for our spiritual lives? Sometimes when we’re going through hurts and difficult things and we feel that God has hidden His face from us, we must remember that His eye is still upon us. The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good. The parents hid their face from their son, but they did so for a reason. God’s love is no less for us when we feel He is distant. He is there, friend. He is still loving and watching over us every moment. He has a reason that He has allowed this to touch our lives and we must learn that we can trust Him.
David used his voice in praise, but he also lifted up his hands as he prayed. He went on to say in Psalm 63, Thus will I bless Thee while I live; I will lift up my hands in Thy name. I believe it would do us a world of good during trying times to lift up our hands while we are in private prayer. Hands that hand down signal defeat, as we read in Exodus 17:12. Hands that are open and lifted up in praise show surrender.
It is painful when God has to pry things out of our hands. ~ Corrie Ten Boom
Our open hands say to God, “I’m taking my hands off!”
When a person is drowning, their hands are up! They are stating their needs for rescue. What help we receive when we slip to our knees and lift up our hands in surrender. If you struggle knowing what to praise God for, praise Him for Who He is. Praise Him for sending along encouragement from His Word. Even this simple post is another reminder to you that God cares for what is happening to you. Praise Him for allowing this difficulty to touch your life.
If we never experience hard things in which we can watch God guide, comfort and teach us of Himself, what do we have to say to someone else when they go through hardships? But after we have come out of the trial and Christ has been exalted, we have a testimony to share!
God sees you, loves you and He is able to rescue you.
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