Thankful For Our Thorn

"Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me,"My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness." There fore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." (2 Corinthians 12:8-10)

The Apostle Paul was suffering from what he called, "a thorn in the flesh" (v.7). What this problem was, is unknown. But it was something that was severe enough that it tormented him. Three times he pleaded with the Lord to take it away. But the Lord's answer to rely upon Him for His strength to endure, is His answer to us today.

The Lord may not always deliver us from specific suffering situations, for reasons we may not understand. But one thing is for certain, we have the Lord's strength to endure whatever it is that comes our way.
In whatever state of suffering, God wraps His arms around us, and helps us to stand.

In the midst of suffering there are those who feel so useless, and feel that there is no value to their lives any longer. The Apostle Paul came to the conclusion that he would boast of his weaknesses, so that the power of Christ might rest on him.(v.10) In essence Paul was saying: "This is not about me, but about the Lord Jesus Christ, and His power and strength for my life".

The question comes: "In our weaknesses, in our limitations, how can we make a difference for the Lord?" When people look at us, and observe our faith, our determination, our confidence, in the midst of trial, what a witness that is! People will see that we have something they need for their lives.

We are not complaining, or carrying with us a negative attitude everywhere we go. But our lips are giving praise, and our lives are being lived out in confidence, and with a vibrant hope.

We will be be strengthened, and the Lord will be glorified, and we will be making more of a difference, than we ever thought possible. GP

 Photo: Glady/2300 images/Pixabay License/Free for commercial use/No attribution required/www.pixabay.com

When Nothing Happens

"Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." (2 Corinthians 12:9b)

 You pray for deliverance from a trial, and you wait for the Lord to do something, and nothing happens. You prayed that what you were trying to accomplish would bring about some progress.

You try to gain some ground in a relationship, or, you try to get ahead financially, but find yourself, getting more behind. You've been sick, and your condition gets worse, instead of better. You say, "I prayed to the Lord, for help, and nothing happened!" "What good is having faith, when the Lord does nothing to help you?"

The Apostle Paul felt that way, with what he called "a thorn in the flesh." We are not sure what that "thorn in the flesh" was, but it was severe enough, that Paul asked the Lord to take it away three times. But it didn't happen. Instead the Lord said to him: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness." (v.9a)

The key to our endurance of various "thorns in the flesh" is our focus on the Lord Jesus Christ, instead of ourselves. If we have given our lives to Him, than we must trust Him, to work in, and through us during severe trials.

If someone can be encouraged by our faith in the Lord, during tough times, than it is worth it.

We may think that nothing is happening for us. But when we look at what may be happening through us, the Lord is definitely doing something, for the Kingdom, and for His glory. GP

 Photo ID 25026315 © Hikrcn | Dreamstime.com

Brought Low, To Reach High

 

"My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have it's perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing."(James 1:2-4) 

 "What kind of a title is this?" you ask! "Brought Low, To Reach High", what do you mean by that? Let's let the writer of our text (James) explain what this means. There are times when God has to bring us low, through the process of testings and trials, in order to help us accomplish the things he mentions here. 

I don't know about you, but I don't have a lot of patience. (2-3) 

When things go wrong, I want a solution right now. And like a lot of people, I step ahead of God, and try to fix things myself. Wrong approach! I have ended up with things more upside down, more times, than I care to admit. It is better to wait on God, and let Him, in His time, to get things back on track. 

Being brought low will also help us to develop perfection, or maturity. (4) I remember a cheese commercial. They humanized a chunk of cheese, acting very disruptive and immature. And then after the piece of cheese had aged, it was acting very cooperative and wise. In His time, and through the process of trials, God grows us up. He brings us low, to help us to reach high to achieve that perfection, or maturity. 

As we live out God's word in the midst of the challenges we face, we develop a knowledge, and experience, that will help us in dealing with problems that arise in the future. Let's not be angry at God, when He breaks us, to bring us to a higher plane of maturity. God knows what He is doing! GP 

 Photo: Rappellinguse/1 image/Pixabay License/Free for commercial use/No attribution required/www.pixabay.com

How To Take The Nails?

 "And when they had come to place called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the criminals, one on the right, and the other on the left." (Luke 23:33) 

The place where they brought Jesus to put Him to death, was a place called "Golgotha", which in Aramaic means "Place of the skull."Another name for it in Latin is "Calvaria" (or) "Calvary."in the Greek, the word "Krainion" is the word for this terrible place.

 It was known as the "Place of the skull" because it was the common place for criminals to be executed. Their bones and skulls were put out of the way, so the people of Israel would not touch them, and become defiled.

Not only was Jesus' death humiliating as He was crucified between two criminals, being numbered with them, but the extreme pain of this kind of execution, was so agonizing, one cannot fathom it, even for a moment.

Jesus took the nails for us. Those nails were meant for us, because we deserved to be punished for our sins. So when it comes time for us "to take our nails" (referring to our suffering) why do we refuse the cross, we are called to bear? One may say: "I'm not the Son of God, how could I ever endure the suffering He experienced?"

Jesus said that He would never leave us alone. His strength is available for us when we go through times of suffering. When we wait upon Him, He will strengthen our heart (Psalm 27:14).

If we love the lord Jesus with all of our heart, this love will compel us to endure with gladness any trial that comes our way. In essence rejoicing (in our nails) is our way of displaying our "faith, hope, and love" 
(1 Corinthians 13:13) GP

 jonnapeitso / 5 images -CCO Creative Commons - Free for commercial use - No attribution required - www.pixabay.com

"...How Much He Must Suffer..."

'But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to hear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name's sake." (Acts 9:15-16) 

If you knew that the job you were called to do contained a lot of suffering and trial, would you do it? There are people who have had delusions with the Christian life, and with Christian service. They had the idea that once they became Christians, and got involved in Christian ministry, that life would be so much better. Life would be free of the trials and turmoil they experienced when they were living for the world.

Jesus said: "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) 

When Jesus called the Apostle Paul to be a messenger to the Gentile world, he told Ananias that Paul would suffer for His name. When we read the book of Acts, and see the activity of Paul in his missionary work, we see that He endured a great deal of suffering. And in the end, he was killed for his good fight of faith.

The Christian life, and the work of Christian ministry, is never easy.
But we find our joy, peace, and eternal hope, in the Lord Jesus Christ.
He has overcome the world, and He will help us to be victorious, over all that we face in this life.

For Jesus, there was the cross to bear, for all man-kind. But on the other-side of that cross, was eternal victory. It will be same for us,
if we remain faithful, and trust Jesus for the strength we need, to endure. GP

 jclk888 / 21 images - CCO Public Domain - Free for commercial use - No attribution required - www.pixabay.com

Yes, There Is A Cross

"If anyone desires to come after Me, let Him deny Himself, and take up his cross and follow Me." (Matthew 16:24) 

I don't feel I am alone in dealing with the roughest part of following Jesus.
The roughest part of following Jesus is the taking up of our cross.

I have spent 41 years in the pastoral ministry, serving the Lord.
My family and I have fought many battles dealing with problems as I have served churches. I am not going to go into specifics, but there have been times, when I felt like the Apostle Paul when he wrote to the church at Corinth: "For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia; that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life." 
(2 Corinthians 1:8) 

Walking in Jesus' shoes on the path of ministry is a very difficult journey to take. Maybe some have had joy all the way, but I would be bold to say, that they would be few and far between. I can not fault my Lord and Savior in leading me astray, because He was honest and direct when He said: "If you're going to follow Me, there will be a cross to bear, there will be difficulty."
I don't feel that we as Christians wanted to sign up for that. But we need to remember that this is what Jesus signed up for, when He went to the cross, to deliver us from our sins. So really, what is our excuse?

"Must Jesus bear the cross alone, and all the world go free?
No, there's a cross for everyone, and there's a cross for me." GP

 Unsplash / 9176 images - CCO Public Domain - Free for commercial use - No attribution required - www.pixabay.com

Am I The Only One?

"Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 
(1 Peter 5:9-10)

There are those times when we go through trials, that we feel like we are the only one who is suffering. I have heard this said, all of my life.
"If you take time to look around, you will find someone who is in worse shape than yourself."

I know that Christians in different parts of the world are being persecuted, and are giving up their lives for the sake of Jesus Christ. The question comes: When we go through a time of trial, does it help to know that others are suffering as well? Is this any consolation? I believe it should.

In our text, Peter tells his readers (and us) that we, along with our brothers & sisters in Christ, all over the world, are battling Satan, and suffering for the cause of Christ. As Christians, we are apart of a world-wide partnership, in the cause of the Gospel.

Together, we suffer, but together we give testimony of the hope we have in Christ, for all eternity. And that's should give us a great deal of comfort, and a strong sense of purpose. And that is what keeps us going, in the midst of trial. GP

 Alexas_Fotos/11111 images - CCO Public Domain -Free for commercial use - No attribution required - www.pixabay.com

Our Cross

"Then Jesus said to His disciples, 
"If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me." (Matthew 16:24) 

 "Must Jesus bear the cross alone, and all the world go free? No there's a cross for everyone, and there's a cross for me." 

Why does there have to be a cross? Why did Jesus have to die on a cross? It is clear that the Old Testament prophesied to what would happen to the Messiah. Read Isaiah 53.

Jesus referred to the lifting up of the bronze snake on a pole to save those who were bitten by snakes because of their disobedience to God. (John 3:14-15) In the same way, Jesus must be lifted up as a sacrifice for the world to see, to be payment for the sins of the world.

Then there comes the question: Why do we have to bear a cross?
The answer is clear in our text: If we desire to follow Jesus, a cross is in the equation. It is part of the life of a Christian.
If Jesus was willing to die on a cruel, humiliating, agonizing cross for us, shouldn't we be willing to suffer for Him?

Yes, there is a cross for all of us, if we choose to follow Jesus.
It is indeed a test of our love for Him. Are you willing to bear your cross for Jesus today? GP

 Photo by Naypong. Published on 05 November 2014 Stock photo - Image ID: 100296178
www.freedigitalphotos.net