Troubles

Gary Smalley, a Christian author, wrote in an article in 2005, “When we camp, we can usually anticipate rain, mosquitoes, running out of gas, a flat tire, losing the traveler's checks, or forgetting the main ingredient to a meal. When families share in solving such conflicts, they can be drawn closer together.”

Last summer my wife and I experienced one of those types of trips where we had two major vehicle breakdowns, along with large repair bills. As a result, we lost our camping reservations. When we encountered new, interesting people along the way while waiting for repairs over several days, we were reminded to seek the positive aspects in these situations.

In the verse quoted, the psalmist identifies two principles that believers should strive for in their lives. One is that being a Christian doesn’t remove the potential for problems in this life. That’s a truth that some people find hard to swallow. But the second half of the verse, which speaks to deliverance, is maybe even more difficult to understand. Deliverance can imply being removed from our problems, but it can also refer to the capacity to persevere while enduring them.

One of the major challenges in the Christian life is learning to trust God in the midst of our troubles. So often the deliverance he offers is not what we want. Yet once we see a positive outcome at the other end of it, or see how we have grown through it, we can learn once again to trust our Lord, even when it’s hard.

Dear God, help me not to worry when bad things happen but to trust that you are right there beside me. Help me to see the “silver lining” in the storms of my life, and look for the positive outcomes. Amen.

Go Deeper — Think of the shared hassles you had when you were with a group of friends, coworkers, or family. How did the difficulties draw you closer? How can you relate that to drawing closer to God?