Holding on Through the Storm

What do you do when the storms in life come? In life we face storms... they are unexpected and out of our control. Being a Christian does not mean that life is a bed of roses or storm free. In fact Jesus told his disciples that they will face trials (John 16:33). HOWEVER, the trials are there to strengthen us, give us the courage to overcome. You see every disappointment is an opportunity for a miracle. Does storms drives us away from God or closer to God? 

You may face storms in your life, it could be financial problems, marriage problems, no one understands you or even that little lie that says 'Give up, it will never work, nobody cares''. David in the bible returned home and found that his enemies destroyed and stole everything from him. His own men wanted to stone him. He had no one to turn to. Now imagine if you were in David's shoe what would you do? He could allow grief to conquer him and sink into depression, give up and quit. But no, he chose to encourage himself in the Lord and I believe it was in Psalm 34 that you see his response. One of the things I noticed in the Psalm is how David chose to praise God despite the circumstances. Praise is a weapon for warfare, Praise brings down what is high and make it small which causes us to overcome. Sometime it's hard to give Praise when life is hard but that is when it means the most. That's why the bible says to offer up a sacrifice of praise. It can be hard but in the end it's worth it, it's your energy, it's worth your time. Through praise, faith will arise and we will have the courage to overcome.

Terry Law in his book Power of Praise And worship wrote
God is not interested only in the praise that we give him in times when things are going well. He is after that praise that comes in the midst of great trial, great difficulty , grief, sickness, demonic oppression, temptation, relational difficulties, and financial problems. He still requires praise. When we give it to Him in time of difficulty it means all the more to Him. We are operating according to the principle of sacrifice.

1 Peter 4:12 (The Msg)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. 

So don't give up! You see God is not interested in the right circumstances but the right response, when you have the right response you are able to overcome the storms in life just as the great men of God like Job, Paul and David did.