Faith in Trials..Craig Denison Ministries;

 Faith in Trials

Craig Denison Ministries;

Weekly Overview:

Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Faith is the undercurrent of everything we do as followers of Jesus. Without faith we lose all that Christ died to give us while here on earth. It is by faith we access the peace, joy, guidance, love, and purpose that comes from restored relationship with our heavenly Father. As we seek an increase in faith in response to God’s faithfulness this week, may you experience a greater depth of intimacy with your living, Almighty, and loving heavenly Father.

Scripture:“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” James 1:2-4

Devotional:

Trials and tribulations have the power to either keep us from abundant life or produce in us character that sustains abundant life. The choice is up to us. Will our faith remain steadfast in the face of trouble or will we abandon the lifestyle of faith for one of the world?

James 1:2-4 says, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” Allow the phrase, “Count it all joy” to settle in for a second. What trials have you faced in the past? What trials stand before you today? Is joy the emotion that stirs up within you when you think about your problems?

My first instinct in the face of trial is to run. I long to abandon the problems before me, to act as if they don’t exist. But Scripture commands me to count my trials as joy and run at them head-on for the sake of being transformed into a faith-filled, steadfast child of God. God sees trials as a chance to produce character within me, not as a circumstance intended to harm me or derail his plans for my life.

The greatest gift we’ve been given in the face of trials is faith. When problems are staring at us head-on it’s hard to see around them to the beneficial outcome God intends. In order to face trials the way God intends, we must have faith. We have to believe that God has an outcome as beneficial as the trial is hard. We have to have faith that God will see us through every problem that stands in our way and produce in us a steadfastness on which we can experience abundant life.

Hebrews 10:35-39 says, “Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. For, ‘Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay; but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.’ But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.” May we not be a people who shrink back but stand on the firm ground of God’s promises. May we be believers filled with faith founded on the faithfulness of God.

Spend time in prayer allowing God’s word to fill you with fresh perspective about your trials and tribulations.

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on God’s desire to use trials for your benefit.

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” James 1:2-4

“And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” Hebrews 6:11-12

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” Romans 8:18

2. Reflect on the trials standing before you. What insurmountable problem is weighing on you? What job, relationship, or circumstance troubles you?

3. Ask God to fill you with faith in response to the trial before you. Allow the Holy Spirit to reveal to you his plans to use the trial for your good. Ask him to show you what characteristic he longs to produce in you. And ask him to fill you with the strength and courage to face your trial head-on and overcome it.

May 1 Peter 1:6-9 be the passage you stand on when trials rise up around you today:

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Extended Reading: James 1

The Power of God's Grace..Dr. Charles Stanley

 The Power of God's Grace

Dr. Charles Stanley

Romans 5:1-5

Grace is one of God's most amazing gifts. It provides us with everything we need to live in perfect freedom: pardon for our sins, healing for our hearts, the companionship of God's indwelling Holy Spirit, and access to freely cultivate our relationship with Him. We work, worship, and enjoy life surrounded by His unconditional love. His grace upholds us, fills us, and sustains us.

Since we are forgiven people, the Lord responds to us not as enemies but as His dearly loved children (Rom. 8:15; Eph. 5:1). He hears our prayers, speaks to us, and acts on our behalf.

The knowledge that we live under the covering of God's grace gives us...

• Security about our position. No one can snatch us out of His hand (John 10:28).
• Boldness to live for Christ. Nothing anyone does or says can shake our confidence in who the Lord is or who we are in Him.
• Peace for today because we can fully trust in His sovereignty. The Lord is carrying out His perfect will--and we can be sure that nothing is able to thwart His plans when we cooperate with Him.
• Hope for the future. This life is just the beginning. One day we'll see Jesus face to face, be perfected as the individuals He created us to be, and live with Him in our true home forever.

The Lord is committed to transforming each of us according to His special plan for our lives. Even His correction is an expression of His loving favor (Heb. 12:10). When we falter or fail, we can rest assured that His amazing grace hems us in and always offers us redemption.

God Wants to Be Our Everything..Lynette Kittle

 God Wants to Be Our Everything

By Lynette Kittle

“‘Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?’ Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind,’”—Matthew 22:36-37

In the 1970s, singer Andy Gibb had a hit song titled “I Just Want to Be Your Everything.” Sadly, his song is about how many individuals feel about their relationships with spouses, children, and friends. They long to be center stage and have all the attention focused on them. But God hasn’t called us to be someone’s everything because that’s His place. When He created marriage, parenthood, and friendship, He didn’t design them to replace Him in our lives but to provide human companionship on earth. When God created Eve, He didn’t fashion her to replace His position in Adam’s life but to be a helpmate. Genesis 2:18 explains, “The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”

Loving God Helps Us Love More Rightly
Whenever we have to pour so much time and attention into someone else, it often gradually turns us away from God. On the other hand, when we give Him our all, it benefits those we love more than giving our all to them. It doesn’t mean we ignore our spouses, family, and friends, but we make a conscious effort to give God our first and best time and attention.

When we love God the most, it doesn’t take away from everyone else but works within us to love others more rightly. Focusing on Him transforms us from the inside out, deepening our affections and relationships with Him and those we love. When God is our focus, He gives us the ability to reach out to others with His love, peace, patience, kindness, and so much more.

God Understands
It’s easy to love everyone above God, even if we don’t think we are. How many times have we put our friends and family before spending time with Him, thinking God will understand because He calls us to love others, and we feel He wouldn’t want us to disappoint them? True, God does understand, but not in the way we think. He sees us put others before Him. Exodus 34:14 describes God in a way difficult for some of us to understand because we are told being jealous is wrong. But God is perfect, without sin, so there is a righteous type of jealousy. 

“Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.”

In wanting to love our families well, some of us have made them an idol we put before God. Jesus explains in Luke 14:26, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be My disciple.”This means our love for Him must come above our love for our family and ourselves, too. God doesn’t just want to be a part of our lives but truly wants to be everything to us. Only when we give Him first place in our lives will we start to grasp how loving Him most, with our whole heart, meets our deepest need to be loved and gives us the ability to love those around us.

Intersecting Faith & Life: 
Have you ever put your family or another person before God in your life, wanting to please them most and focusing all your attention on them, making them number one in your life and your top priority? If you’ve been trying to be everything to your spouse, children, and friends, ask God to help you see He hasn’t called you to take His place in their lives but rather to point them to love Him. Or, have you expected your spouse or friends to please you above pleasing God? If so, confess your wrong desires, asking God to help you look to Him to be everything to you. 

Things That Seem Good..Jennifer Waddle

 Things That Seem Good

By: Jennifer Waddle

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. - Genesis 3:6

As Eve gazed at the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, it’s easy to understand why she was drawn to it. Delightful to the eyes and desirable for wisdom, it was too tempting to resist. Many of us can relate to Eve’s dilemma as we encounter things that seem good—too good to pass up. But in the end, some of those seemingly good things lead us away from the intended path God has for us. And, the delight of our eyes can leave us with a mess of unfavorable consequences.

One practical example would be buying a car. You set out to replace your old, unreliable car for something newer. However, the moment you step onto the lot, your budget-friendly goals are quickly met with stars-in-your-eyes options that offer the latest and greatest everything. Those brand new, shiny vehicles are a delight to the eyes. And there is a pull for your affections that’s difficult to resist.

The thing is, temptations that seem so good, often lose their appeal (and value) once you give in to them. That top-of-the-line vehicle depreciates the second you drive off the lot. And the hefty monthly payment soon becomes a burden you wish you didn’t have to carry. What seems so good at the moment almost always opens your eyes to the undesirable consequences that follow.

I wonder how many times Eve thought about that fateful moment in the garden. Did she and Adam lay awake at night, talking about how different things could have been—should have been? Genesis 3:6 describes the battle of the flesh—the tendency to follow our own desires. Yet, there was another element to Eve’s dilemma that happened right before she considered the forbidden fruit. The enemy slithered in without warning and disrupted her thoughts. As she went about her day, without a care in the world, the serpent swept in with a single question.

The life of contentment Eve had was suddenly disrupted by a suggestion of doubt. And it’s no different for us. We go about our lives doing just fine until one thought, one question, one suggestion offers us something too good to pass up.

Eve’s story can be a guide for us; an example of how NOT to listen to the whisper of the enemy. Even when something seems so good, we can (and should) take a moment to pray and ask for God’s wisdom. His Spirit will either confirm that it is good, or He will open our eyes to the truth of the situation.

Imagine if Eve would have recognized Satan’s question as a diversion from the truth. If she would have stepped away from the situation and called out for God’s help, imagine what a different world it would be! The next time something seems too good to resist, allow yourself some space to ask for God’s direction. That is one good course of action you won’t regret.

A Prayer for Discerning God’s Directions..Meg Bucher

 A Prayer for Discerning God’s Directions

By Meg Bucher

“Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” Proverbs 3:6 NLT

Sleep alludes me at times, and I wake in the still of the night. No birds singing, crickets chirping, or breeze blowing. Silence fills the atmosphere. I’d much rather awake to the sound of the birds singing …somehow, it comforts me to know if they’re awake, a new day has begun. Discernment is a big biblical word but a straightforward concept. As the birds tell us the day has begun, discernment is the gut feeling guiding our confident steps in this life.

The ESV Global Study Bible notes, “To make straight one’s paths means to continually progress toward a goal. In Proverbs, the emphasis is on the moral quality of one’s life path.” I love how God has woven His Word and creation together to guide us into action, call us to be still, and know He is God. Discernment for the Christ follower is beyond a typical gut feeling. It’s a wise knowing. Wisdom we accumulate over the years of our lives as we follow Christ through literal hell or high water. Each experience we have with Him bonds us closer to Him. Every Scripture He illuminates for us as we take it into our lives opens up a new perspective to our purpose in this world.

Discernment, defined by the English dictionary, means “acuteness of judgment and understanding.” Chapter 3 of Proverbs begins, “My child, never forget the things I have taught you. Store my commands in your heart. If you do this, you will live many years, and your life will be satisfying.” (vv1-2) Discernment allows us a choice. Each day, we choose what to conclude about the Scriptures we have digested and the prayers we have prayed. “Never let loyalty and kindness leave you!” chapter three continues, “Tie them around your neck as a reminder. Write them deep within your heart. Then you will find favor with God and people, and you will earn a good reputation.” (vv3-4)

God’s directions are not tricky nor meant to trip us up or send us on a wild goose chase. He fully intends for us to end up at home with Him in heaven, after living the fullest life possible on this earth, to His glory. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart;” Proverbs 3:5 continues, “do not depend on your own understanding.” And then, we come to today’s key verse: “Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take” (v6). This life, which is full of chaos and overrun with unfairness, is meant by the Creator of the Universe to be lived to the full. Jesus died for it. He said, “The thief comes only to kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10 NIV)

Discernment helps us live our lives fully by reading Scripture, praying, and applying it to our everyday lives. Never let loyalty and kindness leave you, Scripture says. “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love,” the Apostle John wrote (1 John 4:8). We don’t live a wise life by studying Scripture alone. Nor do we fully embrace life solely through a rich prayer life. Noticing God and His people throughout our day is wonderful, but alone cannot lead us to life everlasting. It’s a full relationship with God—all of these things combined and a willingness to listen and wait on Him.

Let’s pray:
Father,
Teach us how to be discerning people. We want to follow Your lead, Lord. Jesus promised life to the full, and we want to live it! Help us to see You in every circumstance and person we meet. Shift our perspective to align with Yours, God, for we want to be able to see people as You do. We desire to live according to Your will …because we believe it’s more than we could ever ask for or imagine. As sure as the birds singing tell us it’s time for a new day, direct our steps by Your voice, God. Thank You for Jesus, and Your Holy Spirit, who helps us hear, understand, and navigate according to Your purpose for us. God, we love You with all our hearts. Tune them to Your wisdom and help us discern what You guide us towards in every situation. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.