Monday, February 21, 2011

Help for Adversity - Pt. 6 - Possible Reasons for Adversity



Happpy Monday Sweet Friends,

Here's hoping you had a Fab Friday and
 a Westful Weekend!!  lol


Have to say our Friday wasn't Fab, but it was good,  and our
weekend wasn't Westful but it was Fabulous!
I will have to tell you about it tomorrow tho, cause this
post is already gonna be long!

This week I will continue and hopefully finish the
possible reasons for Adversity.

Another reason I believe we suffer adversity is we
 are being tested and I feel testing can feel just like discipline
 or pruning........ it might be a painful experience, as well.
  Many times it is a very frustrating experience, I've found.

  I truly believe God's reason for testing tho is to show us
and others what we will do in a given situation...........
After all, He already knows, since He knows everything!!

I think of the apostle  Peter and how he told the Lord he
 would die for him,  and I think he truly meant it, yet when
put to the test he denied Jesus not once, but 3 times!!
and Jesus even told him beforehand what he would do.

Here's what Matthew 26:31-35 says,

 Then Jesus told them, "This very night you will all fall
 away on account of me, for it is written: " 'I will strike
 the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock
 will be scattered.

 But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.

 Peter replied, "Even if all fall away on account of you,
 I never will.

"I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "this very night,
 before the rooster crows, you will disown
 me three times.

 But Peter declared, "Even if I have to die with you,
 I will never disown you." And all the other disciples
 said the same.

Now read on...................

Matthew 26:69-75 states,

 Now Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a
 servant girl came to him. "You also were with Jesus
 of Galilee," she said.

 But he denied it before them all. "I don't know what
 you're talking about," he said.

 Then he went out to the gateway, where another girl
 saw him and said to the people there, "This fellow was
 with Jesus of Nazareth."

 He denied it again, with an oath: "I don't know the man!

 After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter 
and said, "Surely you are one of them, for your accent
 gives you away.

 Then he began to call down curses on himself and he swore
 to them, "I don't know the man!" Immediately a rooster crowed.

 Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken:
 "Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times,
 And he went outside and wept bitterly.

Personally,  I think we can have a lil bit of pride lurking
in us, and we get to thinking a lil more highly of ourselves
than we ought,  and sometimes the Lord has to show us
what we are made of without Him being in control.

Have you ever said I would never do that,  when maybe
you saw how someone else responded to something,
when maybe you have never been in that situation
before, but yet you think you would do thus and so.

I certainly have had those thoughts at times..........
well...........that is thinking more highly of ourselves
that we ought,  cause truthfully none of us really
know what we would do in certain situations,  we
might think we do,  but when it happens we might
just be surprised,  for the good or for the bad!!

I have had times when I responded way better in a 
situation than I ever thought possible but then I have
 had times my response was not at all what I thought
 it would be, and I was quite taken aback by it.
Ever had one of those experiences???

I believe they are testing experiences and when
we fail the test,  I think the Lord wants us to take
a good look at why...........sometimes it might just be
 something in our belief system, where our thinking
 and truth is not lined up with God's word.

This example just came to mind about the thinking.

God helps those who help themselves!

I am sure you have heard that said,  and maybe
even believe it....

But do you know, it is no where in God's word,
the Bible.  I had heard that and believed it till I was
 in my early 30's,  but it wasn't true...
in fact the opposite is true,
God gives grace to the humble,  but resist
the proud.  God wants us to depend on Him,
and that takes humility to admit we need Him.
It's not,  that we are never to do anything,  but
 the truth is..........we can never do anything of
any eternal value apart from knowing and
depending on Him.  Our first dependence
needs to be on Him,  and what He can do
through us,  not what we can produce.

Now......do you see how believing this unbiblical
supposed truth could really mess you up in your
 relationship with the Lord.  I have seen that believe
really mess up people's lives because they felt
they had to do it themselves, and they never
looked to the Lord at all.

  So God has to allow us to be tested so that he 
can show us what we really believe.
Cause many times what we believe does not
match up with how we live,  and I think many
times, it is because of falsehoods we believe,
and if we are gonna grow and flourish God has
to get the junky thinking out!!

God also provides a model of this in the
tempting of Jesus in the wilderness,  and he
also shows us how to defeat Satan.....






Matthew 4:1-11 says
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be 
tempted by the devil.
 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.
 The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son 
of God, tell these stones to become bread."
 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread
 alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. "
 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on
 the highest point of the temple
 "If you are the Son of God,"he said, "throw yourself down.
 For it is written: " 'He will command his angels concerning you,
 and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will
 not strike your foot against a stone. " 
 Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord
 your God to the test. " 
 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed
 him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor
 "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." 
 Jesus said to him,"Away from me, Satan! For it is written:
 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only. " 
Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.


Then again we could also reference the Job story,
Job did nothing wrong according to the scriptures
he was a righteous man, but he was still tested.
Read Job chapter 1,  if you don't know the story.


So Tip
#8

Remember that everything that happens to us down 
here is a test of our attitude, dependence and
 devotion to Christ.   Personally,  that really helps
me to know that... and makes me want to pass
the test.  We can pass the test the same way
Jesus did,  when he was tested in the wilderness.
By using scripture!!!

That is the reason we sooo need to be in our
bibles reading daily, cause over time those
verses plaster themselves to the walls of your
 mind and God can pull them up just at the
time you need them.

I am reminded of a story that a dear lady who was 
the Director of Womens Ministries at our church told
us years ago.  She and her husband were missionaries
 in Irian Jaya for years before her husband passed away
 and she came to our church..
Anyway,  while in Irian Jaya (think I am spelling that right)
 she contracted Malaria,  and came very close to dying 
but the thing that sustained her was a scripture that
 God kept running through her mind. 


 Later when she was well, she was going back thru 
some journals she had  written..... and she came
 across the day, that she had read the scripture that
 kept running thru her mind when she was sick.

Her journal entry read.

Didn't get much today!!

Her point in telling the story......................
Read your bible,  cause even when you think
you aren't getting anything..... it is going into your
mind whether you realize it or not.

So I will leave you with that thought........

and the thought that whatever happens 
might just be a test,  so be on guard 
Sweet Friends,

Sorry this is so long........ I am actually 
cutting it short cause I could go on and on,
but know one can only absorb as much
as their bottom can stand to sit!!  lol

Thanks for coming by and hope you 
will come again next Monday as
we talk about Romans 8:28.

Just in case you missed the last post
on reasons for adversity, just

Have a Mighty Good Monday!

Love, Hugs,  and Blessings Galore,
Nellie

8 comments:

  1. Your post definitely requires me to think inward. Have a wonderful day.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I KNOW this is one possible reason for adversity. I primarily appreciate your emphasis on staying in the WORD.

    Can't wait to hear about your (last) Friday and weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a great reminder. It really makes me think. Thanks for sharing such powerful lessons.

    Have a great week and thanks for the emails.

    Blessings & Love
    Janet

    PS I like your background. Very pretty....

    ReplyDelete
  4. I think the older you get the easier it is to rely and trust God. It's so weird to realize years later how the adversity moved your life along. Although, I have to admit it's not easy to swallow when it happens and I DON'T like it!
    Also, I think sometimes God uses us to test others. When you think "this isn't fair. I didn't do anything to deserve this." Then you realize that you were actually an instrument of God.
    Enjoy your gorgeous weather!

    ReplyDelete
  5. In many way we should be thankful for our adversity even though it is hard to even utter for fear more will come our way. But adversity is a teacher, a refiner, a necessity. It is a test and it will come no matter who we are. If we arm ourselves with the word of God we will have the tools needed to get through it. It won't take adversity away, but casting the burden of it at the feet of the Savior will lighten the load and buoy us up. Good post, Nellie!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi Nellie,
    Such a powerful post and so man truths! I truly believe that God allows the trials, to see how we will react, and to see if we are really truly trusting him. My dh always says it's not how we act, but how we react.
    I agree with you, we should really make studying God's word a priority in our life. Great Word for today.
    Thanks for coming by, and for your sweet words of encouragement. I have closed Beautiful pear Tree Lane and am now posting on pear tree lane farmhouse, but was away from my computer for awhile due to sickness.
    Much love,
    Sue

    ReplyDelete
  7. So true - the thought that "God helps those who helps themselves" really is not a Bible thought. So many sayings and thoughts we tell ourselves really are Bible principles and often we don't recognize them as such - and, then, some aren't! Hadn't really considered that.

    These have been some really thought-provoking posts - thanks for sharing. And thanks for faithfully stopping by for a visit - I always enjoy hearing from you!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Your post is very thought provoking & gives me pause to go inward & reflect on the kind of person I am and whether that is truly the person I want to be. Thank you for sharing.
    CAS

    ReplyDelete

Special thanks to all who take the time to leave comments..........They are very encouraging and very appreciated. I enjoy every one of them so much!!
May the Lord Bless You!!
Nellie

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