Friday, September 30, 2016

Flashback Friday: Fiery Trials

            **This post is a part of the Flashback Friday series. Participants use the last Friday of each month to repost an old post that needed more attention, that you're very proud of, that you think is still relevant, etc. It is hosted by Michael G D'Agostino at A Life Examined. I wrote this post exactly 4 years ago on September 30, 2012, and it only got 2 views, so I thought it should be resurfaced.**


Fiery Trials
 
            Do you ever get the feeling that you've been outdone by someone else?  Maybe that's not exactly the right way to phrase it...Has there ever been a time that you have felt down-in-the-dumps depressed and then you come across a story or some news that is far worse than what you are going through?  When you hear about someone whose life is harder than yours, do you feel upset with yourself for feeling down about your own situation?  Or maybe it's the opposite: Do you ever feel like other people have it too easy and barely have any problems?  Of course, there are many different levels of pain both emotionally and physically and each of us handles things differently, so I guess we can't really put our trials on a scale. 

            God knows everything about us, so He knows what we can and cannot handle.  Maybe, when you are in the midst of the fire, you may not feel like you will make it through the flames.  But, if you call out to God for help, He will not let the flames completely consume you.  He discerns and assesses your situation and knows exactly how much oxygen you have left and when to pull you out.  I've heard it said in church that God uses the trials in life to refine us.  Just like pottery, we have to go through the fire to become a finished piece.  1 Peter 1:6-7 says, "In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.  These have come so that your faith -- of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire -- may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." 

            Christians will all go through trials and tests of their faith.  I'm speaking to myself when I say there is absolutely no reason for us to compare our troubles to one another.  Each person is unique and struggles with different things.  Romans 12:15 says, "Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep."  So, instead of trying to judge what seems fair or who is better off, we should just be encouraging and comforting to one another regardless of our own situation.  And when you feel like the flames are surrounding you, just remember all the blessings God has given you. 

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail."
-Lamentations 4:11

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."
-James 1:2-4

8 comments:

  1. In dealing with our recent crisis, I was having a poor me type of day and was typing my medical reports. Every single report had so many different ailments people were dealing with. I think God was reminding me that others go through things too and to perhaps just continue to trust him, he got us through so much in the past, he will get us through this. Good reminder.

    Betty

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    1. Betty, I've definitely had moments like that. Sometimes at the pharmacy, I try to step back outside of the anxieties in my mind and think about what the patients are going through. It can be difficult, but I got to remember that many of them have probably had a bad day of dealing with their own or a family member's sickness.

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  2. Whenever I start getting overly absorbed in my own petty troubles (or even the somewhat significant ones), I remind myself of how good my life has been and how much I now have to be thankful for. There's always someone dealing with far worse than I and whatever I have dealt with in my life is nothing compared with a large part of the world's population. Gratitude should always abound within us.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

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    Replies
    1. Arlee, gratitude is something I need to remind myself of much more often!

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  3. I think everything is relative.

    Love,
    Janie

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  4. It's why group therapy didn't work for me.

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    Replies
    1. Liz, I'm with you. In group settings, I have a hard time sharing my struggles, or sharing anything for that matter.

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