Praying During Difficult Times

Have you ever considered how God wants us to pray during difficult times?  Many times I find myself praying for deliverance or praying that the hardship doesn’t last long or praying to just change something about the hardship I am going through.  But is that really how God wants me to pray?

Colossians 1:11 states that the Apostle Paul prayed for the church to attain every kind of patience and endurance with joy.  Paul wasn’t praying for the church to be delivered from the hardships, but to be strengthened with joy.  It is the joy that only Christ can bring to us during difficult and challenging times when we rely on Him to sustain us.

I believe God is more interested in changing us than in changing our circumstances.  He does not delight in watching us suffer or have a hard time, but He does delight in our spiritual growth.  If we are honest, we must admit that most of our spiritual growth comes during the hard times in our lives, not the easy times.

Difficult times stretch our faith, and those times teach us not to trust in ourselves to solve the problem or change the situation, but to rely on God alone.  It also gives us compassion towards others who are going through difficult times too.

Sometimes we are so focused on the difficult times or the immense problems we are facing, that we cannot see or understand what it is we are supposed to be learning.  As Romans 8:28 says God works all things for the good of those who love Him.  So, since He is working the hard times for our good then we should pray to be strengthened with joy instead of only praying to be delivered.

It is difficult to not pray to be delivered, but possibly if we pray to be strengthened with joy then we may catch a glimpse of the lesson we are to learn and the spiritual maturity we will then gain.

Something Better than Money

There are many of us who I’m sure could use a little extra money. Money has value. It can make things happen, help us acquire what we need, and settle our debts. As valuable as money may be, there are some things that are simply better. There are certain things we need to prioritize above making another dollar. These are things that money can’t buy. Listen to the wisdom from Proverbs 15:16-17 (ESV),

16 Better is a little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble with it. 17 Better is a dinner of herbs where love is than a fattened ox and hatred with it.

Gain and use your money wisely, but never chase it at the expense of our relationship with God and love for others. Remember having a reverence for God is better than great riches. Jesus said it like this in Mark 8:36,

“For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?”

You can have the best that money can buy, but those things find more value when you have someone to share them with. Big houses, fast cars, and fancy food aren’t nearly as precious as love. If you have a loving family and people that truly care about you, you are blessed. You can’t buy that at Walmart or on Amazon. It doesn’t have a price tag.

Take some time today to recalibrate what really makes a person blessed. It’s the presence of the Lord and love. If you have those, no matter how much money is in your bank account, you are rich. Don’t trade them for money, and don’t lose sight of them in the pursuit of money. Money is a wonderful blessing but always remember there is something better than money.

Roll Your Work Your Work to the Lord

There is a sure-fire way to make sure that work we do in this life will last and have a good foundation. It all has to do with our goal and aim. People live for all sorts of things like themselves, money, power, or popularity. However, the Bible teaches us that if we put God first and commit our work to Him, we can do something that really lasts. Consider Proverbs 16:3 (ESV),

Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.

What are you working on in life? What kind of plans are you making?  What is your aim? Have you included the Lord? We are called to entrust whatever we are doing to the Lord. We are to make the Lord our aim and destination. Glorifying Him is our purpose and loving Him is our duty. He should be the foundation for all our work, hopes, and dreams especially if we want it to last.

Interestingly, the verb “commit” from our verse can often be translated “to roll”. You could say roll your work to the Lord and your plans will be established. Picture this. You have a wonderful Radio Flyer wagon. In it you put all things you are working on. Maybe you’re working on improving finances, mending a relationship, or starting something new. The main goal is not just to get them into the wagon and work on them. The main goal is to roll that wagon filled with everything you are working on towards God.

Committing or rolling your work to the Lord is making Him our goal. For example, I don’t work to make money. Instead, as I work and make money my goal is to glorify God. I put my finances in the wagon and roll it towards God. What direction is your wagon rolling? Make sure you are heading in God’s direction. If you can do that, your plans will be established to the glory of God.

Heed Wisdom's Call

God has shown us what is right and good. He has told us how we can navigate this life in a way that we can do well. He has laid before us wisdom and it calls to us that we might heed its instruction. Proverbs 1:32-33 (ESV) tells us,

32 For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; 33 but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.

Whenever we fail to heed the wisdom and truth of God, we are playing a dangerous game. This happens sometimes because simply reject what God has told us. As the scripture says, like the simple, we turn away. We simply tell God no and go about our life as we please. Other times, we understand what God has said, but we keep putting it off. We never do anything about it. We tell ourselves I will do that next week, when I have more time, or when other things are taken care of first. We, like the fool, become complacent and fail to heed wisdom’s call. The end results of such rejection and complacency are death and destruction.

However, the benefits of heeding God’s wisdom are security, ease, and freedom from fear. Wisdom protects you. You live with a sense of confidence and calm assurance knowing God will take care of you because you are trusting Him. Many have missed the peace, joy, and contentment God has for them because they have neglected wisdom. What about you? Is there a bit of wisdom you have rejected? Are you being complacent and putting off something God has told you to do? No more messing around. Don’t live like the simpleton or the fool. It’s time to heed wisdom’s call.