Always In All Things

Trials and difficulties, we face them everyday…several times a day.  They’re in what we say, do, see, and hear.  It doesn’t matter who you are, you will be confronted with it today and tomorrow.

God revealed that fact to Paul. So much that he shared God’s plan relating to the topic with the people in Corinth and us all.  I guess in a way it makes us feel normal. 

The key to that fact is what do we do next after being confronted?  Trials and despairs open the door for temptation to brew. 

How can God help?

In every heartache and disappointment, there is an underlying power within that allows us to move forward on a pace that we can handle and rise above the trial.  It comes from the fact that God has given us promises in His Word that we need to read, digest, and claim as our own consistently. One such promise is this…

We all experience times of testing, which is normal for every human being. But God will be faithful to you. He will screen and filter the severity, nature, and timing of every test or trial you face so that you can bear it. And each test is an opportunity to trust Him more, for along with every trial God has provided for you a way of escape that will bring you out of it victoriously. 1 Corinthians 10:13

God pre-examining our trials is an amazing thing. He knows us.  He knows you. He knows your breaking point. He also knows how to prevent that from happening by creating a solution so you can persevere through it.  Persevering through a trial can be a trial in itself. 

Why won’t He just remove our obstacles?  Why do we have to bear them?  Doesn’t being a Christian give us some discount in our benefits package for this particular area?  I know you must have asked these or similar questions a time or two.

Do you have any obstacles in your life today?

Each obstacle can be labeled as a test from God that causes us to grow.  It may take some work on our part to get around and past each one. His plan stretches us.

Have you ever felt like saying…

“I’ve grown enough Lord. So, no more test..no more growth God…ok?”  Each time I respond to Him in this manner, He patiently reminds me of the positives I have gain from each growth opportunity. Sort of like the ol sayings, “no pain…no gain” and “this is for your own good” 

Often we do not see it or believe it. At times it takes us much longer to wash away the cluttered thinking and discover it…because we have not been looking for it. 

Do we trust God enough?

Victory comes from trust. 

While we have never been promised not to encounter trials, heartache, and disappointment, we have been given the assured promise of being able to face everything with a victorious outcome!

 Victory comes from trust

Our society has many living as zombies, buying into the negativity and hopelessness that this world feeds us.   Self-centeredness runs rampant across our nation. It feeds the hunger of hopelessness by giving ourselves more and more satisfaction vs directing our attention to Gods declarations. 

We can live a victorious life by walking in the promises that have already been given to us.  We simply are not claiming them and living them out.  The negative pull of living outside the plan God has designed for us weighs too heavy for many to unload. They have no room to pick up their victory if something is not unloaded.

What are you experiencing right now that is causing you to feel weighted down?

What do you need to unload?  

We are not meant to carry both – holding on to negativity + God’s promises. We are not super human beings who have the ability to do such a thing. We’ll try.  I’ve tried before. It doesn’t work. 

Laying that extra negative weight of a situation or circumstance down is not a sign of weakness.  It’s what is expected of us from a loving Father whose shoulders are much broader and stronger than ours to carry our loads.

I don’t picture myself laying down my burdens and going to some corner in retreat.  God has not promised me that. His Word declares this…

Yet even in the midst of all these things, we triumph over them all, for God has made us to be more than conquerors, and His demonstrated love is our glorious victory over everything! Romans 8:37 

Even right slap-dab in the middle of everything….we can ALWAYS triumph.  He designed us that way.   Because His love for you and me is so great, He made us to not barely get by, but to overcome with exceedingly more ability than we realize we have!

Always in all things

You and I have been given the ability, through the Holy Spirit, to have a mindset to accept the promises that say we win no matter what the circumstance.  

If you are a child of God, then you can declare and begin to believe and experience the following…

I choose to live in joy.

I choose to look for the positive in every situation.

I choose to know that God has my best interest in mind no matter what I am experiencing.

It may not make me feel happy all the time. I still may experience sadness or heartache in this world.  It’s due to the fact this world has things in it that are like that.  

But in every disappointing event there is a silver lining and victory through Jesus Christ!

It’s time to walk in victory and claim our authority! 

We can walk through walls of doubt and depression!

We can defeat loneliness, low self esteem, and anxiety!

We can crush financial struggles, family hardships, and health issues!

Your greatest victory is right behind your next trial.

Why?
Because…

Always in all things.

Your greatest victory is right behind your next trial

Holy Spirit, empower us today to be reminded that the battle is Yours. You fight on our behave when we give our devotion and attention to You.  I can daily live above… not below my circumstances or even on the same level…but ABOVE.  

We are not just common conquerors. We are more than conquerors.

Always in all things

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