Tough Situations Bring Us Back.

Lately it’s been on my heart that sometimes we need to go through tough situations to bring us back to Christ. It seems, at least for me, that when things are going well I often “need” God less. I start thinking I can handle things or put whoever happens to be bringing me happiness during that season on a pedestal. Instead I should be praising Christ. Remembering that EVERY good thing comes from Him and should be used to glorify Him, and I need Him ALL the time…not just when times are tough. We have to be careful when things seem to be going great not to lose focus on Jesus, because that is when if something goes wrong we can feel as if we have lost it all.

I encourage you to read Romans 5
... but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Also James 1
...Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

I love when it says “who does not change like shifting shadows”. Whether in good times or bad time Christ is consistent, always there, always loving, always merciful, and ever deserving of our praise.

I will leave you with the Crazy Love quote from last week:

“It is not scientific doubt, not atheism, not pantheism, not agnosticism, that in our day and in this land is likely to quench the light of the gospel. It is a proud, sensuous, selfish, luxurious, church-going, hollow-hearted prosperity.”

This week I pray that whether everything is going your way and you feel like you have it all, or you feel as though you've lost it all and life seems too much to bear, that you will not lose focus of the cross. I hope and pray that we will not be "proud, sensuous, selfish, luxurious, hollow-hearted people", but that we would humbly live our lives to serve and glorify our Savior Jesus Christ.

Praying for you all~

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