Faith’s Response to Difficult Situations Produces Remarkable Fruit
The fruits of faith are:
Joy
Patience
Maturity
Lack of nothing
In Philippians, written while Paul was imprisoned in Rome, he uses the word joy sixteen times. His central message is:
“Rejoice in the Lord.”
Paul and Silas once sat chained in a prison cell, their backs torn open by whips, yet they sang loudly and joyfully.
The next time something unpleasant happens to you, start singing.
We must remember that nothing enters our lives without first passing across God's desk.
External pressures—illness, financial hardship, slander, and the like—are often God's means of drawing us closer to Himself.
We can rejoice because God strengthens our trust, teaches us patience, and thereby brings us to maturity.
External trials always contain the temptation to doubt either:
God's love, or
God's power.
To doubt God's love is to say, “God does not mean well for me.”
To doubt God's power is to say, “God is unable to help me.”
Two Common Misunderstandings
Some people think:
God must be displeased with them when life is difficult.
God must be pleased with them when life is easy.
In both cases, they confuse life's circumstances with God's intentions.
Job suffered terribly, yet God delighted in him.
The rich fool enjoyed great prosperity, yet God called him a fool.
External pressure strengthens our trust in God and gives us joy because a fulfilled life is not the same as a smooth life. It is a life of growing relationship with God.
Therefore, we do not need to despair under pressure. Our Father remains in control. Through perseverance He strengthens us and teaches lessons we could learn in no other way.
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