My daily devotional with an encouraging thought.
Romans 5:1-5 says, "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace to which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us."
Let's emphasize a few verses that are here:
v. 3; "Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope."
v. 5; "And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us."
The header to these verses is Peace and Hope. Do you know hard it is to maintain peace and hope in the midst of suffering? I'm sure you do. I'm sure you've been there. Whenever I read a devo or Bible verse about suffering and praising God through trials, I always think of the song by Casting Crowns called "Praise You In This Storm". Do you know that song? The chorus goes: I'll praise You in this storm, and I will lift my hands, for You are who You are, no matter where I am. And every tear I've cried, you hold in your hands. You've never left my side, and though my heart is torn, I'll praise You in this storm". I'm going to attach a YouTube video with a link to that song.
“Only a believer who has faced distress can develop steadfastness. That, in turn, develops character." - JAW
Some of you may not care about your character, or you may not understand the gravity of your character. Your character says a lot about who you are. It says a lot about how you handle situations. Your character honestly defines you. What if our character embodied the perfect image of God? What if when people looked at us, they literally said, "Wow, you know that person loves Jesus". That would be the biggest compliment someone could ever give me. I want people to see Jesus in me through every situation I face, including the trials.
Praise God through the trials.
It's hard to do. It's hard to praise God through the trials, but it's so important for us. We will face so many trials as we live through our Christian walks. We will be judged, made fun of, harassed, mocked and literally any other thing you can think of. Hey, here's a reminder: that happened to Jesus. When Jesus walked this earth, He got mocked. He got judged. He got harassed. People literally spit on him. They killed him over it. And even through his trials, he still said, "God, not my will, but Yours". Can you say that when you go through a trial?
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