Holding On In Difficulty

This past week has been a surprise, and not in a good way, at work.  We had a difficult situation revealed and have been working to identify how to overcome a significant deficit that will result.  While this is a strange way to start a reflection on my faith, this situation is absolutely impacting my relationship with the Lord, my faith, my belief and my will as I press in to hold onto promises and directions given to me. 

Every job I have taken over the years has been the result of my pursuing the Lord's plan for me, and while it seems like I have, at times, made bad decisions, each one has been with a single purpose of trying to follow the Lord's direction.  During my last discernment process, the Lord asked me who I was willing to help succeed, as I was trying to decide between two companies.  It was the most definitive question as the two options were polar opposites, and the choice was easy.  That question is my driving purpose in my present position, and while I could be making more $$ in other positions, I am trusting His purposes for me here, knowing that my life purpose is about more than just my own gain, or well-being.  

I bring all this up to frame my reflection this morning, for while I am in this position by my own choice, and I believe by His direction, I find myself in a very difficult place.  My flesh says bail-out, find something with a better future, better benefits, better pay, less stress, etc.  I am hounded by feelings of failure, even though the situation is not my doing, and I certainly would like to take an easy out.  In the midst of this, I am choosing to stay the course, to trust that the Lord has a plan and that it is ultimately for not only my good, but for the good of the people I am working with as well.  

I have been reflecting on several different scriptures in my struggle, and it is interesting how many struggles there actually are in scripture. Everyone from Noah and Abraham, all the way to Paul and the other Apostles, experienced difficulty in their lives.  Struggle is not to supposed to be a surprise for us, nor the indication of failure or sin on one's behalf, but it is part of our human, and Christian experience.  If we look at Hebrews 11, we find the hall of fame of faith, people who believed in God in spite of the difficulties they encountered, and acted on that belief.  It is interesting, that the author of Hebrews notes that, 

"These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised" (Hebrews 11:39 NIV).   While this might seem like a very discouraging word, in each of the stories represented God did provide guidance, relationship and even blessing, it was just that there was always more, and each of the people in the list were looking towards the future towards Christ, without fully knowing or understanding what the fulfillment of that promise would look like.  

In a similar way, we are encouraged to look towards eternity, to our life as sons and daughters of God in relationship with Him.  There is more to our life than our terrestrial existence, and our eyes should be fixed on this greater reality.   Paul and John both write about eternal life, and how we are called to this, and gifted this by Christ.  Jesus constantly spoke about the Kingdom of God, and according to Peter this is an eternal kingdom, to which we are called (2Peter 1:11).  Jesus made the way for us to experience this eternal kingdom, enabling us to live with Him both now and eternally. He spoke of going back to the Father to prepare a place for us (John 14:2-3), so that He might bring us with him to that place.  

The tension in our lives is to live in the midst of our present reality, while looking towards the future, eternal reality.  We can't check out, for we have purpose and calling here, as well as the opportunity to experience some of that eternal kingdom, here on earth!  We must engage our faith, and act on our beliefs and trust that the Word of the Lord is true, regardless of our present situation.  Paul writes of how he was flogged, stoned, ship wrecked, hungry, thirsty, (2 Cor 11:24-27) and in all of this his faith was his anchor.  He believed, trusted and endured, and saw God do amazing things through his life, and witness.  His struggles didn't disqualify him, or indicate that God disapproved of him, but they were instead markers that pointed to the faithfulness of God in his life.

This morning I am encouraged to hold on, to press forward, to believe in God's promise, direction and faithfulness in spite of my circumstances.  I am encouraged to look at my situation as an opportunity for the Lord to move, to provide perspective, guidance and direction.  I am encouraged that by holding on to Him, in the midst of this struggle, I am strengthening my faith, and acting on my belief, both of which are good things.  

I know I certainly have not achieved everything I seem called to, but I am confident that as I turn my eyes to the Lord, He will see me through, and fulfill all His promises.  I am grateful for His peace in the midst of the struggle, and rather than complain about how this isn't what I signed up for, I can instead praise Him for His blessings and faithfulness, remembering how He has intervened in my life, over and over again.

Blessings!  -sam