And why have you made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us in to this evil place? it is no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink.
Like the Israelites after 37 years in the wilderness, they had forgotten that their wanderings were a result of their parents and their own sin. They could not accept the fact that they brought their problems upon themselves, so they blamed it all on Moses for their poor condition. This relates to a lot of us today and especially me. I spent most of my adult life blaming and being angry with God for my dear mother's illness and her death after eight years of suffering leaving me broken hearted, bitter and angry for years. I lived an unfulfilled life of bitterness, unforgiveness and anger pretty much most of my adult life blaming every thing that didn't go my way on God, my mother being taken away from me at an early age and just about everything and everyone but myself.
Often our troubles result from our own disobedience and lack of faith. Since being rescued from the pit of hell by the grace of God and my total surrender to Christ, I have come to the realisation that my troubles were not caused by God or anyone else; rather by my own lack of knowledge, disobedience and ignorance of the word of God. Until we can face this reality, there will be very little peace and no spiritual growth in our lives.
Reflections:
Think back to the root of that bitterness or anger you have been harboring in your heart for years blaming everyone else but your own actions and doings. Go the Lord in prayer today and seek forgiveness and surrender your life to Him asking Him to become the Lord of your life by leading and ordering your steps in everything you do from now.
Applications:
Look for books by great men and women of God on Faith and Obedience to read.
Spend time studying your Bible for revelation in God's word in your life for your spiritual growth.
Make prayer a priority and learn to spend quality time with your heavenly Father.
Power verses:
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."--- Jeremiah 29:11
"This third I will bring into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, 'They are my people,' and they will say, 'The LORD is our God.'"--Zechariah 13:9
"There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt." -- Hosea 2:15
"The LORD will keep you from all harm--he will watch over your life;"-- Psalm 121:7
2011 Be Enyonam Gbekle. All rights reserved.
Wow, sorry to hear about your mother.
ReplyDeleteJust because God loves us that does not mean that we wouldn't be exposed to evil. We ARE on earth not heaven. I think alot of people have this false sense of what it means to be a christian, that things will be prefect from then on.
Thank you Chizzy and yes, I had to learn that the hard and painful way. The good news is, those experiences are my testimonies and I can't help thanking God for them all for my good. It's a privilege to be loved this much.......
ReplyDeleteYou are blessed sis,
Enyonam
I agree with Chizzy D about understanding that being Christians does not preclude us from pain and anguish. I'm so sorry about your Mother and I'm glad you are profiting from your pain. It's so vital to move to that stage.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this.
Interestingly God uses this struggles in our lives as a way to keep our attention focused on our mission to be conformed to the likeness of His son.
ReplyDeleteThank you Maid of heart. In my experience, pain and struggles can be tools to reveal areas of weakness in our lives. God also uses them to shape and prune us. This "sanctification process" begins when we first ask Christ to enter our lives and ends when we meet Him face to face........... It's a beautiful experience and very humbling.
God bless you,
Enyonam