Hardship Breeds Faith
“If hardship were any measure of being out of God’s will, Christians would be in trouble; I rather like to think of Paul, and remember that as soon as He answered God’s call on his life, the hardships increased, defeating everything except his faith, which now erects itself as a permanent trophy of victory on which we look and say, ‘I know whom I have believed,and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day’.”
-Kelly Crawford
Related posts:
Uncategorized | Word Warrior | 
May 1, 2009 10:02 pm
Audio available soon!
Amen!
You know, I’ve been thinking about how one of the devices the enemy likes to use against us is the false notion that we are alone. He uses it to convince us that no one sees us when we sin. He uses it when we know that we need to repent, but are afraid of someone finding out what we’ve done. And he uses it to convince us that when times are rough, everyone else has fled.
But the truth is, we are never alone. Never alone when we commit sin. Never alone when we think we’ve dodged repentance. And, even in our deepest valleys, we are never alone. And for those of us in whom the Holy Spirit truly and actively dwells, we cannot be convinced that we are ever, ever alone.
So praise unto Him, ‘who is able to keep you from falling…”
Thank you, Kelly. I will make a copy of it and put it on my ‘frig!
So true! I have never understood this modern movement in Christianity that God blesses us with ease and wealth! Certainly God provides, but God also calls us to lives of suffering, that we may be sanctified and learn to lean on Him.
~Bethany
I laughed when I read this. (I know, not funny.) My problem is the exact opposite. I feel that when things are going good, I must be out of God’s will! I am so used to suffering and hardship that when God blesses me with something smooth and easy I think ” Oh no, I must have messed up, this is too easy!” My husband think I’m queer. When something is difficult or a task isn’t going the way he’d like it too I pipe in and say “You must be doing something right!” This usually earns me a stern look, then a laugh.
It’s true, God never promised a walk in the garden here on earth, but instead trials. How did the Church as a whole forget this? I think it has something to do with the prosperity our nation has experienced. We are so used to things being quick, easy, rewarded, etc. that we think God works the same way. Just my thought.
BIG amen!