Glory Just Around the Corner
By James Ryle
"Friends, when life gets really difficult, don't jump to the conclusion that God isn't on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner." (1 Peter 4:12-13. The Message).
Sometimes things can get so difficult that even the most ardent believers look heavenward with serious questions about whether or not God is involved in our affairs anymore.
Even Jesus Himself cried out on the cross, "My God, why have you forsaken me?"
Sometimes God pulls just far enough away to awaken and alarm us by His absence. Perhaps we may have grown so accustomed to His blessings and benefits, that we inadvertently began taking them for granted; failing to humbly acknowledge His presence and His provisions in our daily lives. Living presumptously, without showing our gratitude to God for who He is and what He does.
Nothing snaps us out of that indifferent daze more quickly that a good dose of real difficulty, with a side order of God's perceived absence. When all hell breaks loose, and heaven is no where to be found -- that will get your attention!
But, God is not absent, nor is He distant. He's just silent; watching and waiting for how we handle the situation.
Will we bellow in unbelief like those who know not God at all? Or will we, like Job of old, trust Him though He slay us. The truth is that the difficulty you are facing is a spiritual refining process; God is separating the gold from the dross in your life. And if you will quietly trust Him through the ordeal you will soon discover it was worth it all -- for glory is just around the corner.
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