Posts
Paul was describing how he managed to hang on through some
very tough times with God’s help. My
commentary boiled it down to this:
1)
Remember
what God is to you
a) Praise
Him because He is God
b) Praise
Him because He is the Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ
c) Praise
Him because He is the Father of mercies
d) Praise
Him because He is the God of all comfort
2)
Remember what
God does for you
a) He
permits the trials to come
b) He
is in control of trials
c) He
enables us to bear our trials
d) He
delivers us from our trials
e) He
is glorified through our trials
3)
Remember what God does through you
a) We
learn to be channels of blessing to others
b) He
perfects our character and helps us to share the character of God
c) Through
our sufferings He prepares us for something He is going to do
“How we handle the difficulties of life will depend largely
on what kind of character we have, for what life does to us depends on what
life finds in us.”
To Paul, having a clear conscience despite everything was
very important. In other words, not disappointing
God during our trials. “When you have a
clear conscience, you will live in the light of the return of Jesus Christ, you will be serious about the will of God,
you will glorify Jesus Christ, and you will be on good terms with the Spirit of
God.”
If instead our conscience is clouded by sin, we can find
ourselves experiencing the opposite
of these things during our trials.
Father, there sure have been a lot of trials over the last
three years. But I can look back and see
that You’ve been using them to grow my faith and my character, and You’ve
taught me better to trust You. Through
it all, I’ve learned how to help others to do the same. Thank You for the growth that has come from
the trials. Give me opportunities to
share with others how they too can find rainbows in the storm clouds.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
No comments:
Post a Comment