"Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him."
James 1:12
Do you ever feel like you're trapped in a never-ending cycle of the same kinds of suffering and challenges? I do. It feels like whenever I take a step up, I get pushed back three steps. It's exhausting. I'm so tired of failing. The same thoughts keep going through my head: Is it me? Am I just missing something? Why is it so easy for some people? Am I just a failure? Why does everything I touch fall apart?
It's painful, too. Some nights I want to scream at God. I want to scream and ask "WHY ME?" Why do I keep suffering like this? Why do my friends continue to abandon me? Why do I always find myself short on money and struggling to make ends meet? Why do you keep putting me through the same thing seemingly every day?
In my Thursday night young adult group at church, we watched a sermon by Robert Morris called Dream to Destiny. It sounds more like a motivational speech than a sermon, I know. But it was actually really good. He explained that we all have a destiny and to reach that destiny, we have to undergo some tests. At one point he said that, if you fail a certain test, God will keep putting you through it until you succeed.
Tonight, I was sitting in my chair, close to tears as I crafted an angry text to a friend, asking why on earth things are so hard for me. Why does God keep putting me through the same things over and over?? And then Robert's words came to mind along with the word "trust". Suddenly, I felt a great peace. I am not trapped in a never ending cycle of misery. God is simply teaching me to trust and, like the patient teacher he is, he's putting me through it again and again until I succeed.
If you feel like you're stuck repeating the same things, maybe you haven't passed your current test yet. But have faith. God will get you through it
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;in all your ways submit to him,and he will make your paths straight."
Proverbs 3:5-6
"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us."
Romans 8:18
James 1:12
Do you ever feel like you're trapped in a never-ending cycle of the same kinds of suffering and challenges? I do. It feels like whenever I take a step up, I get pushed back three steps. It's exhausting. I'm so tired of failing. The same thoughts keep going through my head: Is it me? Am I just missing something? Why is it so easy for some people? Am I just a failure? Why does everything I touch fall apart?
It's painful, too. Some nights I want to scream at God. I want to scream and ask "WHY ME?" Why do I keep suffering like this? Why do my friends continue to abandon me? Why do I always find myself short on money and struggling to make ends meet? Why do you keep putting me through the same thing seemingly every day?
In my Thursday night young adult group at church, we watched a sermon by Robert Morris called Dream to Destiny. It sounds more like a motivational speech than a sermon, I know. But it was actually really good. He explained that we all have a destiny and to reach that destiny, we have to undergo some tests. At one point he said that, if you fail a certain test, God will keep putting you through it until you succeed.
Tonight, I was sitting in my chair, close to tears as I crafted an angry text to a friend, asking why on earth things are so hard for me. Why does God keep putting me through the same things over and over?? And then Robert's words came to mind along with the word "trust". Suddenly, I felt a great peace. I am not trapped in a never ending cycle of misery. God is simply teaching me to trust and, like the patient teacher he is, he's putting me through it again and again until I succeed.
If you feel like you're stuck repeating the same things, maybe you haven't passed your current test yet. But have faith. God will get you through it
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;in all your ways submit to him,and he will make your paths straight."
Proverbs 3:5-6
"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us."
Romans 8:18
