Bitter or Better…

“Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD. I will be joyful in God my Savior.” (Habakkuk 3:17-18)

Our God is a loving God and He would never do anything to hurt us. He will never have us face a situation that we cannot get out of, when we are tested and tempted He will always show us a way out (1 Corinthians 10:13). What we have to determine is when we are presented with circumstances that are difficult, or when we face hard times or persecution…  Do we get bitter or better?

The Bible is filled with stories of people where God used less than favorable situations to help them spiritually grow. Whether it be Job and the incredible losses he experienced, or the Apostle Paul and the time he spent imprisoned. Go chose to use these situations to grow them spiritually, neither of them complained and no one griped. Instead they used these times in their life to glorify God. When they where faced with these events they didn’t shake their fists at God and ask why, instead they decided to get better, not to be bitter over their circumstances.

Has God recently placed a similar situation in your life? Are you going through something right now that is stretching you beyond your comfort levels? When the world is presented with problems, they complain, moan and gripe. Remember Christian, though we are in this world we are not of this world (John 17:14), so we cannot react as the world does. We must hold tight to the promise of Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose.” Trusting that God has a plan for us and that plan will give us hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11)

Life is not all about the things that happens to us, but rather how we react to those things. God uses circumstances in our life to refine us; it’s just like anything else. If we are planning to grow our muscles, we must push our body to the point of physically tearing the small muscle fibers to spur them to new growth; this is where the old phrase “no pain no gain comes from.” So what’s different about God, there are things in our life that God wants to tear away and the only way He can is to stretch our faith muscle. It may hurt for a while, but it won’t kill us, it will grow us. And that which does not kill us, can only make us stronger.

“And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” (Romans 5:2-5)

There is a saying “Troubles turn you into treasure.”  It means “A person begins to develop fine character by experiencing difficulties.”  There is also a saying “Patience is a jewel for life.”  It means “Because being patient is the foundation for happiness, experiences requiring patience are very valuable.”  When looked at life like this, the idea of evaluating troubles in a positive way is not so unusual for us to do. We have all heard the old adage “When life give you lemons, make lemonade”! The point I think God is trying to make is……..

In life we will go through trials, and when this occurs we have two choices. We can get bitter or allow God to make us better!

Dear God-
Forgive us Lord for always trying to figure things out for ourselves, spur us Father into a deeper relationship with you. When troubling times confront us, teach us to be better, teach us to lean on you and not to carry those burdens ourselves. Show us God just how to bring you honor and glory during our tough times, so that we may praise you at all times, even during our storms. Refine us oh God, and let your will be done in our lives. We love you God, because of who you are. We humble ourselves, so that you may be exalted.

In Jesus Name- Amen!