Joy Amidst Suffering

JOY AMIDST SUFFERING

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,”

 (1 Peter 1:3)

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Good morning, my brothers. Trust you are excited about the day that’s before you. I appreciate you starting your day with me and trust that the ministry of Freedom Fighter’s is a blessing in your life.

Right now there seems to be so many people hurting and going through times of difficulty. I thought today’s devotional from our REAL VICTORY FOR REAL LIFE would speak to your hearts. It was written by one of my former staff members, Brian McFeaters. Brian and his family live in Lancaster County. Hope it touches your heart. – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

            Normally the people that we will have the greatest impact on in this life are our children.  They in effect are our legacy.  The things we teach them and show them about their relationship to Christ will hopefully far outlive us.  When my second daughter was stillborn with only three months remaining until her birth, it was hard to come to the realization that she would not become part of my legacy.  However, what I soon began to realize is that I was now to be part of her legacy.  The Lord will use her death to change me, and this will be part of how He conforms me to the image of His Son.

            So it is with the difficulties, trials, struggles, and pain we face in this life.  In First Peter chapter one, Peter tells us that we can greatly rejoice even though now we suffer grief in all kinds of trials.  The reason we can rejoice, Peter goes on to tell us in verse seven, is because suffering proves our faith.  The proving of our faith results in praise, glory, and honor going to Jesus.  And the end result of this process, as we see at the end of verse nine, is joy, because we are receiving the goal of our faith -- the salvation of our souls.

            We really only have one choice when we experience the difficulties, trials, struggles, and pain in this life.  The experience can crush us and leave us bitter and useless, or it will prove our faith which is more valuable than gold.  We really never know how strong or real our faith is until we face something we know we ourselves cannot handle.  Let the thing that you are facing today prove that your life is lived in Faith to Jesus Christ. Brian McFeaters

Team YOU: Leviticus 17-18; Proverbs 15; Matthew 27:27-50

Motivations: Pain is inevitable, but misery is optional. We cannot avoid pain, but we can avoid joy. Tim Hansel

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 2:19; Level 2: Ephesians 2:19-22

Powered Up:  We’re under instructions to change the world. Once you’ve been rescued from it, you’ll need power to become a threat to it. The world contained you in its grasp until now will not release its hold on others without a fight. Power is the key to victory, and prayer is the pathway to power. Jack Hayford