Let those who suffer according to the will of God commit
their souls to Him in doing good… —1 Peter 4:19
{CHAMBERS} “Choosing to suffer means that there must be
something wrong with you, but choosing God’s will— even if it means you will
suffer— is something very different. No normal, healthy saint ever chooses
suffering; he simply chooses God’s will, just as Jesus did, whether it means
suffering or not. And no saint should ever dare to interfere with the lesson of
suffering being taught in another saint’s life. The saint who satisfies the heart of Jesus will make other
saints strong and mature for God. But the people used to strengthen us are
never those who sympathize with us; in fact, we are hindered by those who give
us their sympathy, because sympathy only serves to weaken us. No one better
understands a saint than the saint who is as close and as intimate with Jesus as
possible. […] God places His saints where they will bring the most glory to
Him, and we are totally incapable of judging where that may be.”
{ELGIN} When I was in the Army I used to say that “In
the Army we practice to be miserable.”
Actually that was not too far from wrong. We had to train in harsh conditions so when
it was time to go to war, we would be ready to face harsh conditions wherever we
went. I met a young Army officer in a
restaurant the other day. I noticed he
had a 4th Infantry Division patch on his shirt and I was assigned to
an armor battalion in the 4th Division as a young lieutenant. He
said that he was going to his next assignment, but when he arrived his unit was
deploying to southwest Asia. I told him
that at least he would be warm. He said
oh no, he was going to be in the mountains.
To him, not a big deal, that what he was trained to do. Well, in much the same way, God will allow
difficulties in our lives. James said to “count it all joy”. (James
1:2-3) Remember that joy is a fruit
of the Spirit, not a happy time, and so is patience. We endure because we are empowered by faith
and the presence of the Holy Spirit in each of us. I remember when we were in Mississippi after
Katrina, in the midst of the devastation, a volunteer asked me if I liked being
in Mississippi. My response to him was
this, “Geography or circumstance has nothing to do with it. There is nothing better than being in the
center of God’s will for my life. And so, “yes” I like being in Mississippi because
this is where God wants me to be.” My
wife and I lived in a pop-up camper for 6 months. A 28 foot travel trailer for 2 years. And a
500 square foot house for the rest of the time we were in Mississippi. Was it hard? Yes, it was a very difficult
place to be, just like Haiti. Was it
right? It could not have been more
right. Did it require personal
sacrifice, of course it did, but we have been called to follow Jesus, wherever
that leads.
A song just popped into my mind, “Wherever He leads I’ll go.” “Wherever He leads I’ll go. I’ll follow my
Christ, who loves me so. Wherever He
leads I’ll go.” Is that true for
you? It should be. You may not be called to do what we did, but
maybe you will be. The thing is, will
you follow Jesus or will you walk away?
Will you endure the hardship, or will you look back at Sodom and long to
be where you were before God said go? Only
you know the answer.
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