SCALING THROUGH DIFFICULT SEASONS IN LIFE
Many a times questions have remained unanswered in the hearts of many Christians when they go through trying times, questions like ‘what is happening Lord?’, ‘why are things not working out like I am expecting them to?’, ‘for how long o Lord?’…..the list of questions continues on and on. During difficult seasons of one’s life, how do one scale through? During the days when it seems as though heaven is shut, seasons like in days of Eli the Priest when the word of God becomes scarce, many will ask ‘DOES GOD APPROVE OF DIFFICULT AND TRYING TIMES FOR HIS CHILDREN?’
Some Myths about Difficult Seasons
If you are truly a believer you will not go through difficulties? This is false as Jesus Himself told us that in this world there will be tribulation, trail, distress and frustration (John 16:33) .
If you are going through a difficult time in your life it means you are rebelling against God in some ways. This is also untrue because God Himself will from time to time lead us through the valley of shadows of death to prove our faith in Him not necessarily because we have rebelled but for the eternal purpose in His mind (James 1:3&4).
If you have been praying hard, giving your tithes and giving your offerings you will not go through difficult times. As beautiful as performing all these acts are, they are not guarantees for escaping difficult seasons, ask Bro. Job.
The predicament of Job
In the days of Job in the land of Uz, no one came near to him in right-standing with God, He was described to be blameless and upright, one who {reverently} feared God and abstained from evil, yet he suffered one of the most tragic incident that ever befell a man in a day, he lost in a day his oxen, sheep, camels and all his children left only with a wife who wanted him dead by asking him to curse God and friends who considered him to have committed a great evil against God. How did Job survive? How was he able to scale through? What sustained him during his trying moment? I will proceed to talk about some cogent biblical ways to scale through difficult seasons in one’s life and still come forth as refined gold.
A growing understanding of how God makes vessels that he intends to use: - God will allow you, YES ALLOW you go through certain difficult stages in your life and these difficulties vary in magnitude with different individuals and the purpose that God has in mind for such individuals. A proper understanding of this can sustain, helping also in putting in the required patience like Abraham, Job, David and many others did.
An assurance that the difficult season is temporal, but for a moment (II Cor.4:17). The bible calls it a light affliction, if it has a starting date; it has an expiring date also. Joseph didn’t see the moon and sun bowing to him only to have ended up in the prison and die there, instead his difficult days ended when he transited to become a prime minister in Egypt, Hannah didn’t die barren, the children of Israel didn’t die in the hand of their oppressors, it was all for a moment.
Making the word of God your daily confession can help you scale through your most trying seasons, your confessions are like seeds that will bring a lifetime harvest of victory and peace. God had already told the Israelites that the land ahead was their theirs for the taking, although God had spoken, they children of Israel kept murmuring about the difficulty in taking the land when they should have been making loud the promise and covenant of God. Maintaining a word-centred confession in faith will get you through the difficult seasons of your life.
Give yourself to continuous prayers, meditation on the word and giving of thanks. Why prayers? Because the prayer of a just man makes tremendous power available. Why meditation on the word? Because through meditation, your thoughts and will remain in a position of continuous alignment with God’s thoughts whereby useful strength and instructions can be drawn. Why thanksgiving? Because this creates an atmosphere of hope and faith around you always, I Thessalonians 5:18 says to give thanks no matter what the circumstance is.
In conclusion an old adage says “tough times don’t last, only tough people do”. If you will scale through your most difficult moments and don’t for one second think to yourself that your trying season will not come, for it will surely come and when it comes you must follow those who through patience and faith obtained the promise, that’s the pathway to victory, walk in it, tie yourself to that path, cling to it, SHALOM.
Tobi Ibitola
Some Myths about Difficult Seasons
If you are truly a believer you will not go through difficulties? This is false as Jesus Himself told us that in this world there will be tribulation, trail, distress and frustration (John 16:33) .
If you are going through a difficult time in your life it means you are rebelling against God in some ways. This is also untrue because God Himself will from time to time lead us through the valley of shadows of death to prove our faith in Him not necessarily because we have rebelled but for the eternal purpose in His mind (James 1:3&4).
If you have been praying hard, giving your tithes and giving your offerings you will not go through difficult times. As beautiful as performing all these acts are, they are not guarantees for escaping difficult seasons, ask Bro. Job.
The predicament of Job
In the days of Job in the land of Uz, no one came near to him in right-standing with God, He was described to be blameless and upright, one who {reverently} feared God and abstained from evil, yet he suffered one of the most tragic incident that ever befell a man in a day, he lost in a day his oxen, sheep, camels and all his children left only with a wife who wanted him dead by asking him to curse God and friends who considered him to have committed a great evil against God. How did Job survive? How was he able to scale through? What sustained him during his trying moment? I will proceed to talk about some cogent biblical ways to scale through difficult seasons in one’s life and still come forth as refined gold.
A growing understanding of how God makes vessels that he intends to use: - God will allow you, YES ALLOW you go through certain difficult stages in your life and these difficulties vary in magnitude with different individuals and the purpose that God has in mind for such individuals. A proper understanding of this can sustain, helping also in putting in the required patience like Abraham, Job, David and many others did.
An assurance that the difficult season is temporal, but for a moment (II Cor.4:17). The bible calls it a light affliction, if it has a starting date; it has an expiring date also. Joseph didn’t see the moon and sun bowing to him only to have ended up in the prison and die there, instead his difficult days ended when he transited to become a prime minister in Egypt, Hannah didn’t die barren, the children of Israel didn’t die in the hand of their oppressors, it was all for a moment.
Making the word of God your daily confession can help you scale through your most trying seasons, your confessions are like seeds that will bring a lifetime harvest of victory and peace. God had already told the Israelites that the land ahead was their theirs for the taking, although God had spoken, they children of Israel kept murmuring about the difficulty in taking the land when they should have been making loud the promise and covenant of God. Maintaining a word-centred confession in faith will get you through the difficult seasons of your life.
Give yourself to continuous prayers, meditation on the word and giving of thanks. Why prayers? Because the prayer of a just man makes tremendous power available. Why meditation on the word? Because through meditation, your thoughts and will remain in a position of continuous alignment with God’s thoughts whereby useful strength and instructions can be drawn. Why thanksgiving? Because this creates an atmosphere of hope and faith around you always, I Thessalonians 5:18 says to give thanks no matter what the circumstance is.
In conclusion an old adage says “tough times don’t last, only tough people do”. If you will scale through your most difficult moments and don’t for one second think to yourself that your trying season will not come, for it will surely come and when it comes you must follow those who through patience and faith obtained the promise, that’s the pathway to victory, walk in it, tie yourself to that path, cling to it, SHALOM.
Tobi Ibitola
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