Love Demands A Choice

Suffering; difficulties; frustrations; irritations . . . shall I go on? None of these things are pleasant and we certainly don’t like to experience any of it, right? Well, let’s talk about it a moment . . . out Lord was resurrected and now lives in our hearts and allows us to live a victorious life!

All of that is absolutely true! However, do you remember what preceded Christ’s resurrection? Well, it was preceded by a short period of suffering. He was beat; bruised; whipped and on and on it went. Think of our own lives. We do eventually die! We do occasionally suffer! Sometimes we do experience pain and sorrow.

Oh, we certainly do not wantto suffer or be hurt. When there is an opportunity to suffer, I don’t know anyone who jumps up and down like Arnold Horshack, “Ooh, ooh. Me, I want to . . .” We want painless deliverance, supernatural intervention. “Do it, God,” we pray, “because I am weak and always will be. Do it all while I go my way, waiting for a supernatural deliverance.”

We may blame our troubles on demons. We seek out a man of God and hope he can cast out the demon so that we can go on our way with no pain or suffering. All done! Breeze right through to a peaceful life of victory. We want someone to lay hands on us and drive away all the dryness. But victory is not always without suffering and pain. Look at your sin. Face it. Suffer it through, just as Jesus did. Enter into his suffering. Suffering endures for a night, but joy always follows in the morning.

God’s love demands a choice. If God supernaturally lifted us out of every battle without pain or suffering, it would abort all trials and all temptation; there would be no free choice and no testing as by fire. It would be God superimposing his will on mankind. He chooses to meet us in our dryness and show us how it can become the way into a new life of faith.

It is often the will of God that we suffer dryness and even pain. “Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator” (1 Peter 4:19).

Thank God, suffering is always the short period before final victory! “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle you” (1 Peter 5:10).

Nickolas

(I send out messages like each morning. If you are interested, let me know. However, you can also find these messages at: Thought For The Day)

Comment by Vanessa Bordlee on June 10, 2012 at 4:08am: Interesting observation. Yesterday, along with all the blessings, a lively dog bolted across my path just on time for me to trip causing my back to return to its previously painful, stiff condition. I'd been working on rehabilitating it for many weeks and had achieved so much better quality of life.

I was impressed that this was like a thorn in my side and the enemy was trying to discourage me. Like I tell my kids though...I don't have to give any attention to the pesterer in my path.

Ice, exercise, good food, helpful herbs are every one still at my service from the throne of glory. So, I can rejoice as the bible writer invited us to do. I can't remember who wrote that verse about rejoicing when you fall into diverse problems. Do you know where that verse is found? I want to read it again.

Comment by Nickolas Hiemstra on June 10, 2012 at 1:52pm: Absolutely! James 1:2. I like the way J.B. Phillips translates James 1:2-8:

When all kinds of trials and temptations crowd into your lives my brothers, don’t resent them as intruders, but welcome them as friends! Realise that they come to test your faith and to produce in you the quality of endurance. But let the process go on until that endurance is fully developed, and you will find you have become men of mature character with the right sort of independence.

If, in the process, any of you does not know how to meet any particular problem he has only to ask God—who gives generously to all men without making them feel foolish or guilty—and he may be quite sure that the necessary wisdom will be given him. But he must ask in sincere faith without secret doubts as to whether he really wants God’s help or not. The man who trusts God, but with inward reservations, is like a wave of the sea, carried forward by the wind one moment and driven back the next. That sort of man cannot hope to receive anything from God, and the life of a man of divided loyalty will reveal instability at every turn.

Comment by Vanessa Bordlee on June 12, 2012 at 3:36am: Thank you! I am going to share this verse with my mom who came to visit us. Something I had hoped could happen for a few years now. She has been facing similar but different setbacks with her health etc. She told me she had been impressed that she should press on and keep her mind off the negative influences in her community.

I think God sent her to encourage me.

Love Demands A Choice

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