Afflicted by God!

“¹I AM [Jeremiah] the man who has seen affliction... ²¹But this I recall and therefore have I hope and expectation: ²²It is because of the Lord's mercy and loving-kindness that we are not consumed, because His [tender] compassions fail not. ²³They are new every morning; great and abundant is your stability and faithfulness. ²⁴The Lord is my portion or share says my living being (my inner self); therefore will I hope in Him and wait expectantly for Him.” (Lamentations 3:1^a; 21-24 Amplified)

Sometimes in life we go through situations and circumstances that we do not understand neither can we really explain what is happening in our lives. At these times in life, all we can do is murmur, complain about the pain that we are going through even when we have done what we ought to have done to make sure that everything is going the way we would love to see things. But we ought to understand that there are some things that we will never understand. All we can do is align ourselves with God and allow him to do what He wills with our lives.

Paul Reminds us and tells us that “… we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28, NIV) At times it beats my knowledge and understanding of how God deals with us and the situations that He allows us to go through; yet, whenever we ask questions of why things are happening the way they are; His answer is always “my Grace is sufficient for you..” (2 Corinthians 12:9) and for someone in pain; this is something hard to take in.

We have examples of people who have been through hard times and they came out strong! from them, I learn a few lessons that I want to share with you! Take a look at Job and Joseph. Both were beloved people but they find themselves in circumstances and situations that they can’t explain. but from them, I take home these important lessons. During times of trials and afflictions:

• Your FAITH is tried, Tested and BUILT: When we are down in the valley, you will agree with me that you have very few friends. Nobody wants to be associated with you at that time. Joseph couldn’t understand why his own brethren would sell him off to slavery. I believe Job couldn’t take it anymore when his dear wife told him to curse God and die… (Job 2:9). But look at both of them.. through these trying moments, they hold onto God and at the end they come out victorious.
• You are being PREPARED for your next level: If I was Joseph; I wouldn’t have imagined that the dreams I had would have come to pass. But we see after getting from Potiphar's house to the prison, his next place was the palace. There are things that God needs to see in you before He can release you to your next level… and the best way to is for you to go through what you are going through now. Be patient and learn the lesson NOW!! else you will repeat till you learn.
• In the end you get a DOUBLE PORTION: When God was through with Joseph, he was elevated to be the second in Command in Egypt and above all he had control of all the store house of Egypt. Job was restored and he was blessed with double of what he had in the beginning. (Job 42:11)
• You Know the FAITHFULNESS of the Lord: There is no one else who can give a TESTIMONY of anything if he/she hasn’t been at the place of TESTING. You can only know God well if you have been to that place where you have nowhere or no one else to turn to. Do not rely on people or things that can fail you… Trust in God and in Him alone.

You may not understand everything that’s going on in your life right now, but I encourage you to keep your head held high. Know that God is working in your life. Keep being faithful. Keep doing the right thing, knowing that in the end God is going to turn things around in your favor. If God is for you, who can be against you? No one. Greater is the One who is in you than anyone who can be against you. No matter what’s going on around you today, you can put your shoulders back and put a smile on your face because God is working things together for your good because He loves you!

Amen!