WHY TOUGH TIMES ARE GOOD TIMES - those lonely and fearful moments are the times when we feel Christ’s tangible presence - a person who has been blessed abundantly in this world and who has had his prayers answered soon would never have the privilege of knowing Christ at a deeper level as a broken-hearted man would - blessings would never allow a man to grow in Christ - but suffering does - God has a purpose in our lives, through our pain and problems too. Encountering tough circumstances by itself is a tough terrain to walk on. The Christian life is not a bed of roses. But when tough times become the dawn and dusk of our lives, it leads us to that one question: Where is God? Is He oblivious to our needs or has He forgotten us? The feeling gets worse when we see God answering the prayers of the people around us while we continue to wallow in our troubles. The test of suffering reveals our present relationship with Him. It also makes room for improvement. It allows us to examine ourselves in Christ or else we would never be growing. Even though we pray to God, we often rely on our own strength and our own knowledge to tackle everyday issues. So, when such a problem arises in which we find ourselves helpless, we have no choice but to rely only on God. Reliance on God means more time to be spent in God’s presence and understanding how God works on a deeper level.

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Why Tough Times Are Good Times

3 REASONS WHY TOUGH TIMES ARE GOOD TIMES

those lonely and fearful moments are the times when we feel Christ’s tangible presence - a person who has been blessed abundantly in this world and who has had his prayers answered soon would never have the privilege of knowing Christ at a deeper level as a broken-hearted man would - blessings would never allow a man to grow in Christ - but suffering does

Soumya

Renew Thy Mind

You have heard it before: God has a purpose in our lives, through our pain and problems too. But what is it and why?

Okay, so this might sound like an offbeat advice to us Christians to the point that some of us don’t really want to hear it.

Why, because the pain has been too painful and problems that don’t seem to go away has made us so weary to hold the baton of faith.

Encountering tough circumstances by itself is a tough terrain to walk on. So then, you may ask me what I asked myself: How can you say it is good?

As you read further, I will share with you what the Holy Spirit has been teaching me in the midst of pain, problems and unanswered prayers.

Of course, we know that Christian life is not a bed of roses.

But when tough times become the dawn and dusk of our lives, it leads us to that one question: Where is God?

Is He oblivious to our needs or has He forgotten us?

The feeling gets worse when we see God answering the prayers of the people around us while we continue to wallow in our troubles.

Which is why writing this post itself has been challenging for my faith but all the more necessary.

It seems pain and problems are allowed by God. And there are three major 3 reasons for this:

#1:  Passing the Faith Test

I think I can give you a better perspective on this by the story of the Israelites passing through the wilderness elaborated in the book of Numbers (Numbers 11, 20).

Keep in mind that before the wilderness journey started, these people and their ancestors had endured a whopping 450 years of slavery, hard labor and cruelty under the Egyptians.

What might appear to be quite unfair to further undergo the wilderness walk, the bitter waters of Mara (Exodus 15:23) and so on was God’s plan (And if you read Genesis 15:13 you will also know those 450 years of slavery was also God’s plan!).

The land of Canaan was their destination as commanded by God.

There was a reason: this land was governed by strong and powerful people called the Anakim who were otherwise undefeatable.

Their land was blessed with all possible resources but they were a godless nation filled with sin that God had to punish them.

His plan was to bring His people to that land but it required a sense of godly discipline from them too.

The wilderness was the training period of the Israelites before they set foot on the land of Canaan.

If they did not mature as children of God, they were bound to lose the very land that God so easily gave into their hands by falling into all sorts of traps and sins laid by their enemies.

The test of suffering reveals our present relationship with Him. It also makes room for improvement.

It allows us to examine ourselves in Christ or else we would never be growing.

#2:  Relying Wholly on Him

Even though we pray to God, we often rely on our own strength and our own knowledge to tackle everyday issues.

So, when such a problem arises in which we find ourselves helpless, we have no choice but to rely only on God.

David knew the secret of this which is clear from the book of Psalms.

Reliance on God means more time to be spent in God’s presence and understanding how God works on a deeper level.

In the meantime, we develop the fruit of the Holy Spirit which is patience (Galatians 5:22).

#3:  Growing Deeper in Christ

Lastly and most importantly, I would like to keep reminding you that Christian faith is more than prayers being answered and deliverance being received.

It is more than living a life of worldly blessings.

Yes, it is important to God that our prayers be answered and that we are delivered from troubles. But needless to say, living in Christ is about living for Christ.

It is our very relationship with Jesus that serves the purpose of our lives. It is what defines our faith.

“Abide in Me as I abide in You. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in Me.” -John 15:4

Bear with me on this analogy: You and your bestie had a small argument.

Would that one fight hinder you from talking to your friend ever again? Would you not rather forgive and get back together because you love your friend so much?

Now, Christ has not forgotten you.

In fact, He is evermore present in your problems that He wants you to grow into Him so that you can prove that your love for Him does not end when the worldly blessings end.

He wants your love to be genuine.

Strangely enough, those lonely and fearful moments are the times when we feel Christ’s tangible presence than those times when we were in our comfort zone.

What I learned during my tough times was that it was a unique opportunity that few possess to have an even more intimate relationship with Christ.

A person who has been blessed abundantly in this world and who has had his prayers answered soon would never have the privilege of knowing Christ at a deeper level as a broken-hearted man would.

Blessings would never allow a man to grow in Christ. But suffering does. And that is why it is permitted in our lives.

In my next post, I will share with you regarding the don’ts during the tough times that we must be aware of. Do share your thoughts on this topic in the comment box below.

God bless!

Hey, Soumya here. Thanks for checking out my blog Renew Thy Mind.

SO WHAT’S RTM ALL ABOUT?

This is the place where I share my spiritual experiences with you and what the Holy Spirit has taught me so far, that we may learn together to possess an intimate and personal knowledge of Christ. As a young adult myself, I wish to cover the usual questions and doubts we all have when we have just arrived at the bay of our Christian life.

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