"Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you as though some strange thing happened unto you. But rejoice inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when His Glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy." I Peter 4:12.13 KJV
I have always loved the book of Job, just imagine that God would have so much confidence in a man that He in His ALL KNOWING POWER, knew that Job would praise God even unto death. I have never asked to be tested like Job. But when God puts a mountain in my path, I pray for strength, courage, and faith to climb that mountain every step of the way.
God keeps us from many dangers and trials every day, I am not always faithful to thank Him daily for these enormous blessings, but I intend to be thankful from now on. God is always true to His word, but also knows His children so well. He knows that we must keep our spiritual bodies built up and in good health. Just as we keep our human bodies in good health.
Every trial that comes into our life either has one or two reasons:
1. We neglected our spiritual life by not reading His Word every day. (Yes, you do have time to sit down a few minutes EVERY day to read His WORD and to pray.) i.e., Keep a Bible in the bathroom, on the back of the throne is a good place. I mean you are just sitting there looking down at your feet right? Leave off an episode of TV, I mean it will be on again tomorrow. I love reading the Psalms in all the versions. Pray while you are driving to and from work, or while you are running errands, or waiting in line at the store, pray for those around you, you don't have to pray out loud unless you want to, if you do hey fine with me probably with them also you may be the only one who has prayed for them that whole day. Read the WORD, I love to study with all my versions around me and read the scripture from each version. I am somewhat of a Bible junkie, I especially love the slender thin ones that you can put in your Bible and journal devotion bag and carry with you. I also love good devotion books. I love the ones that lift me up with powerful words from THE WORD. Some of my favorites are Oswald Chambers. (you must get his old one and the new revised one), The God Calling Journal by A. J. Russell, All of Sarah Young's devotional books are sooo worth buying. The devotion books by Cindy Trimm are awesome and also Max Lucado has lots and lots of wonderful faith building devotion books.
I especially love the beauty of the KJV, it is my "go-to" Bible, when the world has turned up-side down and I lay prostrate on the floor asking God to let it somehow build my faith so I can deal with the problem. I just love to read the KJV and pray until God's Holy Spirit calms my spirit and lets me know that it is in His hands and no matter if I can not make heads or tails of it, God will see me through oh, Hallelujah!! Our God is an awesome God.
2. God wants to receive Honor and Glory out of our trials; and when God says "ENOUGH" and the trial is over we will be as fine gold, refined in the fire. found in 1 Peter 1:7 KJV
When The Holy Spirit reveals to us that this mountain we MUST climb, REMEMBER, the poem written by Margaret Fishback Powers, "Footprints". From the day we ask Jesus to be our Savior and the Lord of our lives and we let His Precious Blood cover ALL our past sins, we become a new person in Him. We then commit the rest of our lives to serving Him, if we could see into the spirit world we would see two sets of foot prints, ours, and Jesus's walking along beside us every step of the way.
The last verse of the Footprints poem asks the question, "Lord when looking back on my life with you I see two sets of footprints, until I come to the parts of my life when the most fiery trials, the most horifying times in my life occured. Then there is only one set of footprints, When I needed you the most Lord why did you leave me?"
"He whispered, "My precious child I love you and will never, leave you never, ever, and during your trials and testings, when you saw only one set of footprints it was then that I carried you." (an exerpt from Footprints)
When we are climbing up that mountain, take one step at a time. If you come to a place that you don't see how you can go any farther up, then stop, stand still and sing ( I really am going to practice yodeling.)
When Paul and Silas were beaten with many stripes for preaching about Jesus they were thrown in jail and their feet were fastened into stocks. At the midnight hour Paul and Silas sang songs of glory and praise unto God, the jail was shaken the bands fell off all the prisoners. The jailer was going to kill himself because the prisoners were freed from their chains and stocks, but Paul cried with a loud voice , "do thyself no harm for we are all here. The jailer saw God in Paul and Sila. He asked, "Sirs what must I do to be saved?" he and his household were saved because Paul and Silas sang and gave glory to God even climbing up their mountain. Taken from Acts 16, KJV
My precious readers my prayer is that if you are climbing a mountain now or one is in your future, ask God for strength to climb one step at a time, sing, yodel, pray and read your Bible. Remember as it says in the Bible several times, "This too shall pass." Always be faithful, I did not say be perfect, if you stumble on a rock on the mountain, ask God to forgive you and show you where the next foothold is, rest a little while and continue on in God..
He will make us perfect when we get to Heaven. Just be Faithful to Him and don't forget to yodel.
Remember God loves you and so do I, Love Gloria
Copyright 2011 Gloria B. Powell. All rights reserved.
