Finding God in the Tough Times

I found this and thought it very interesting...

Finding God in Tough Times
Sometimes we're looking for the wrong stuff. God isn't out of the hard time; He's with us in the hard time. God isn't always the fire escape or the exit ramp. And God doesn't cause problems. In this world, we will have trouble (John 16:33), but we are reassured that our temptations are common to man (1 Corinthians 10:13)

.1. God uses tough times to direct us.
Problems change plans. It's part of the spiritual refining process. And God uses problems to point us in new directions and down new paths. Hard times pick you up and drop you somewhere else.

1 Peter 4:12-13: "Friends, when life gets really difficult, don't jump to the conclusion that God isn't on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner."

Lamentations 3:33: "He takes no pleasure in making life hard,in throwing roadblocks in the way."
Aristotle said we only learn through pain.

Proverbs 16:9: "In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps." and Psalm 119:59: "When I took a long, careful look at your ways, I got my feet back on the trail you blazed."
You can make a plan, but God directs, and He usually does it with problems. Rarely do we question what's critically important during good times. In 1 Kings 17, God tells Elijah to go to a brook, where He will be fed by ravens and drink water from the brook. After a while, the brook dried up. If God hadn't done that, Elijah would never have moved.

Question to ask yourself: Where is this problem leading me?

2. God uses tough times to inspect us.
Jeremiah 17:10: "I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve."God gives pop quizzes - not scheduled exams.

Job 7:17-18: "What is man that you make so much of him, that you give him so much attention, that you examine him every morning and test him every moment?"God is more interested in what's on the inside. It's like a tea bag; we need to be put in "hot water", so to speak, in order to see what's on the inside. Or an avocado - you need to squeeze it to know that it's ripe.

Proverbs 16:2: "Humans are satisfied with whatever looks good; GOD probes for what is good."When you keep going through the same lesson over and over - what is God trying to show you? It only should have taken the Israelites a few weeks to go through the desert, but it took them 40 years.

Question to ask yourself: What does this tough time reveal about me?

3. God uses tough times to correct us.
Hebrews 12:8-10: "If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness."
God does not punish His children (meaning Christians); He disciplines and corrects us because He loves us. Correction always looks at the future: how can we get better/learn from this? Christ took our punishment (Isaiah 53:5). We don't have to pay for our sins.

Job 5:17: "So, what a blessing when God steps in and corrects you! Mind you, don't despise the discipline of Almighty God!" CS Lewis said, "God whispers to us in our pleasure but shouts to us in our pain." It's a spiritual megaphone.

Job 36:15: "But those who learn from their suffering, God delivers from their suffering." God uses distress to open our eyes.

Question to ask yourself: What is this problem teaching me?

4. God uses tough times to protect us.
Psalm 91:3: "That's right--he rescues you from hidden traps, shields you from deadly hazards."

What's a disappoint for us is an appointment for God.

1 Peter 3:17: "It is better, if it is God's will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil."
"Why is this happening" is not the best question. My pastor told this great story about how his dad built him and his brother a go-cart. It had a built-in part called a "Governor" that regulated it so it wouldn't go too fast. One day, his brother decided to take the governor off, get in the go-cart and drive. Well, he ended up flipping over in the go-cart! God is always trying to protect us, but often we take it into our own hands and remove the safeguard He has put in place.

Proverbs 20:24: "The very steps we take come from GOD; otherwise how would we know where we're going?"
Joseph (in Genesis) had a terrible route. Sold by his brothers into slavery, accused of rape, imprisoned. But Genesis 50:20 reassures us: "Don't you see, you planned evil against me but God used those same plans for my good, as you see all around you right now--life for many people."

Question to ask yourself: What is this problem protecting me from?

5. God uses tough times to perfect us.
1 Peter 5:10: "And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast."

There is a process that we are in the middle of. God is working in us.

Romans 5:3-4: "There's more to come: We continue to shout our praise even when we're hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next."It helps us to trust in God. If we focus on the problem, and not God, the problem wins.

Question to ask yourself: How is this situation perfecting me?

Closing: God, where do You want me to go? Is there a weakness, a misplaced priority? What do You want me to learn? What is the greater good?

A thought to ponder

The will of God will never lead you where the grace of God cannot keep you...

My thoughts on God being an Interventionalist God

I think that ever since sin entered the world man has been bent on making his own way in the world and for the most part God has been left behind. I believe that God IS an interventional God with the chief evidence for this being that He sent Jesus. What would be the point of creating this world and in particular humans (and Genesis says humans were created in Our image’ and for/to be in communion with God) and then stepping back and leaving everything be?

So in my understanding there are 2 views of God in this area
1 Non-Interventionalist God, we have made our own mess. After creation God stepped back to watch the show. This gives a picture of an unfeeling God. A God who is apart from His creation and who does not care.
2 Interventionalist God, this I see as a God of love, who is doing everything He can to bring His people back to Him. Restricted by our own free will however.

Evidence from the bible that God is an Interventionalist God…
There are stories upon story in the bible of God’s gracious and or judgmental intervention in both the lives of inderviduals and in whole communities. In no particular order here are a few such examples.

Luke 7: 11-17 healing of the dead man
2 Kings 4: 1-7, 8-17 provision for the faithful
Isaiah 43: 19 a way where there is no way
Abraham: Genesis 12: 1-5, 15: 1-6, 17: 1-8, 18: 11-14, 21: 1-8, How long did Abraham wait? Was he denied?
Bartimeus: Mark 10: 46-52 He prayed and the Lord answered
The women with the issue of blood: Mark 5: 25-34 her faith and desperation
The man at the pool in Bethesda: John 5: 1-9 God is still going about His mercy

Again and again God intervenes in the plight of the Israelites in the old testament and of coarse the most valid picture for an Interventionalist God is that of Jesus Christ. The Son of God sent to redeem and to bring a people…all people back to the Father.

I also believe however that there is a part on our side to be played when it comes to divine intervention. It always comes from God but man must play his part.
Faith, if we could simple believe God without doubting Him. Hebrews 11: 6, Mark 11:22-24.
Prayer, Ask Him, Seek Him, be in communion with Him. Matt 7:7-11, 1 Sam 1: 10 -12, come to Him with boldness Hebrews 10: 22.
Obedience, Isaiah 1: 19 obedience is better than some sacrifices and genesis 22: 10-19 Abraham obeyed and God acted in time.
Holiness, walk in holiness Hebrews 12: 14.

It is not in the nature of God to force anything on anybody. For any blessing including divine intervention, there must be willingness and yeildedness to the hand of God.

And this is where free will enters…If we are not willing and yielded how can God intervene? To intervene in our free will is to take away that free will. God does not intervene with our capacity to exercise our free will, whether we use it for the betterment or the detriment of ourselves and others. The issue of sin and free will is one of the most troubling to get your head around (least that’s what I find). I have put it in the basket called ‘God knows and understands and that’s ok…I don’t have to’ I accept by faith that it is all ok because God is in control. And I remember this…The bible speaks of praying for each other, praying for ourselves, intercession etc, suggesting that God DOES intervene in the lives of His People.

The Stand

You stood before creation
Eternity within Your hand
You spoke the earth into motion
My soul now to stand

You stood before my failure
Carried the Cross for my shame
My sin weighed upon Your shoulders
My soul now to stand

So what can I say
What can I do
But offer this heart
O God Completely to You

So I'll walk upon salvation
Your Spirit alive in me
This life to declare Your promise
My soul now to stand

So what can I say
What can I do
But offer this heart
O God Completely to You

So I’ll stand
With arms high and heart abandoned
In awe of the One who gave it all
So I’ll stand
My soul Lord to You surrendered
All I am is Yours

Heart Sore

I don’t understand why I’m so heart sore...or do I...I actually think I have a pretty good grasp on the why...it just won’t filter down to my heart...

There are so many awesome things going on right now and I am happy and yet underneath I am heart sore. At the moment I feel like its washing over me and pulling me down...truth be told I think deep down I know the remedy...the remedy is allowing hope to flourish.

Last week when telling someone about my week and giving prayer points I described my life at present as quite calm...I had said I felt like everything was going well and it felt happy and like I was sitting in the calm of the storm...you know that moment before a storm hits when everything is calm and at peace...I was happy with work, friends, and life in general. I felt blessed that we had found an awesome house and were moving, I felt like things at school were turning around and I was making some kind of positive impact and in general I just felt blessed...
And so maybe that’s it...here’s the next storm...but this storm doesn’t seem to go away...it just recedes for a while then comes back worse than the time before.

The storm is loneliness...I’m tired of being alone...and yet I have almost convinced myself I should start accepting that I will be alone forever...which not only sucks but cuts me at my very core. And because of this I don’t let myself hope or pray for that special someone to come along cos I don’t want to set myself up for the possible fall when it never happens...so this is my struggle...pain now or pain later and what is the effect on me and my future...

Pain now, is accepting I will always be alone and living with that reality and walking through the storms of loneliness as they come...

Pain later, letting myself hope and dream for a husband and children and sometime down the track feeling the pain of unrealised hopes and dreams...

Right now I just reread what I wrote and I don’t want anyone to think that I’m really sad and depressed and upset and down and whatever cos I’m not...this is just one aspect of my life...and I do love my life, I love my friends, I love my church, I love my fellowship group, I love my family and I love my work... This is just one struggle I face that is becoming annoying...

Anyways I had to get it out...I’m at school and trying to listen to the kids share their heartbreaking stories while mine was hurting for myself was killing me...but I feel better for typing it out and will now go back to listening to the kids...

What will you choose to do...

This song by the Dave Crowder Band touches my heart...in my job i see so much hurt and pain...i want to be the kind of person that takes the time with people and shares the love of Christ even when they dont realise it...i want to to flow from me and be like a calming balm on the hurting...i think we have the power to change something...we just have to be determined...determined to love and determined to be used...used by God to change the world...

And the problem is this
We were bought with a kiss
But the cheek still turned
Even when it wasn’t hit

And I don’t know
What to do with a love like that
And I don’t know
How to be a love like that

When all the love in the world
Is right here among us
And hatred too
And so we must choose
What our hands will do

Where there is pain
Let there be grace
Where there is suffering
Bring serenity
For those afraid
Help them be brave
Where there is misery
Bring expectancy

And surely we can change
Surely we can change
Something

And the problem it seems
Is with you and me
Not the Love who came
To repair everything

Where there is pain
Let us bring grace
Where there is suffering
Bring serenity
For those afraid
Let us be brave
Where there is misery
Let us bring them relief

And surely we can change
Surely we can change
Oh surely we can change
Something

Oh, the world’s about to change
The whole world’s about to change