Nobody Knows the Trouble I Seen

I had an interesting conversation with someone recently. And though their emotions weren’t unusual, they are wrong. When bad things happen to us, we ask some pretty strange questions sometimes. We might ask, “What did I do now to deserve this?” “Why do you hate me so much, God?” “Will this life of trouble ever end?”

Or we could ask, “What can I learn from this?” “How much of Your strength will I need to get through this one, Lord?”

Or have you reached the point in your Christian walk where you have learned to ask for trials?

I think many of us think of poor Job when we face trouble. If anyone got hit hard and for no reason, it was Job. He lost it all, and even his friends were of no help. Another favorite is Joseph. Yeah, he was probably a little snotty to his older brothers, but nothing merited his being sold into slavery! And though we think about Job having all these catastrophes happen close together, good old Joe seemed to have a lifetime of false accusations thrown at him. Yet in the end he achieved what most people never dream of. I’m not talking about being second in the kingdom stuff, or even reuniting with his family. He was used by God to save a family and set the groundwork for one of the most amazing history stories of a nation to happen. And he recognized that God was in control of his life the entire time.

So, how do you react to problems? Do you question and blame or do you embrace the learning experience? And what do you use as a meter to gauge how bad really bad is? Lastly, what do you do with the trial when it’s past? Do you bury it deep inside, or do you share the experience so others can learn from it, be blessed by it, or see God through it?