As you read through this, may God give you grace to excel even in times of trials.
Turmoil surrounds God’s children during every age of history, but we need not live a life ruled by uncertainty. Wars have occurred during every generation; yet we can have a life of peace. Everywhere I turned to last night talked about uncertainty, confusion, unrest, and anger. I listened to the news and grew saddened by what I heard. I turned to podcasts and found the speakers to be disheartened and depressed. Then I turned to my Bible. Joy and peace at last! Every page I turned to brought messages of hope. It was as if God was embracing me in calm. No matter what this world reals with, we are positioned safely in God’s hand.
Psalm 112 holds many comforting promises. Verse 4 really spoke to my heart today. It says: “Even in darkness, light dawns for the upright, for the gracious and compassionate and righteous man.” Even in darkness! Do not be afraid of the darkness consuming our world. You do not belong to this world! No matter what happens, we can have comfort, peace, and even joy! Even in the darkest of times, we are called to live graciously, compassionately, and righteously. We cannot allow the troubles around us to make us angry or disillusioned. No matter how bitter the world becomes, God’s love remains sweet.
In Matthew 24:6, Jesus warned, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.” God has a perfect plan. We may be tempted to worry when violence fills our news stream every day, but understand that this too must happen. Jesus will return one day soon. Though all the world burn with anger, let’s make sure he finds us living in the love he freely gave us. Feel the calm his sovereignty gives. Share the compassion he has shared with us. Walk in fellowship with God and our joy will shine like the noontime sun even in the darkest of times.
His Love Never Fails
One thing we call all rely on is the promise that love never fails. It never fails. It cannot fail. Even if we lose from the world’s viewpoint because we acted in love, we win. We win because love was our goal and our motivation. This will grow every important as our world embraces hatred and violence more and more. There must be a noticeable difference between our lives and the lives of non-Christians. If we are not distinct, we are wasting our time.
It may be easy to allow ourselves to become swept up in the emotions of revenge or seeking to justify and glorify our actions, but is that the way God calls us to go? I look to scripture to discover the truth. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 says, “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”
Are we patient when we demand that people see from our point of view – now? Can we say that we are long-suffering if we rise up in anger at every offense? If we embody love, as our God does (1 John 4:8), we will be patient with the people around us. We will trust in God’s timing and not try to force His hand to move faster.
We can apply all of these descriptions of love to our everyday lives. We must ask ourselves if our actions and our words are kind, humble, and truthful. If we measure ourselves by this standard, we can know we are walking in God’s direction and not according to man’s standards. We live in confusing times where pride is glorified and envy is celebrated. We are taught to embrace sin and celebrate those ‘bold’ enough to declare their allegiance to themselves. Are we steadfast enough to walk in love through the obstacles this life sets in our path? With God’s help, I believe we are. I believe the people of the world will see a difference in Christians because of the love we cling to. That testimony will never fail to show the truth.
