Difficult times
2021-06-12Philippians 3:8 CEV
When we’re facing a difficult time and can’t see how we’re going to get through it, there’s one thing we must try and do: turn to God. When Job lost everything and his whole world was turned upside down, he said: ‘He knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold. My feet have closely followed his steps; I have kept to his way without turning aside. I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread’ (Job 23:10-12 NIV).
Paul’s life wasn’t trouble-free either: ‘I have been in danger from rivers…from bandits…from my fellow Jews…from Gentiles; in danger in the city…in the country…at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have laboured and toiled and…often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and…often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches’ (2 Corinthians 11:26-28 NIVUK).
Reading that list can make us wonder how he managed to get through it. Paul knew the secret to making it through tough times – He allowed his troubles to drive him closer to God: ‘I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong’ (2 Corinthians 12:9-10 NIV). Let’s try to remember Job’s and Paul’s attitudes, and be inspired by them when we’re facing our own troubles.