Troubles will come
BAD THINGS happen to everyone. All of us, at one time or another in our lives, have found ourselves in some type of trouble. Sometimes it’s trouble caused by our own wrongdoings, us being irresponsible, being careless, or stubborn. And there are some troubles that we found ourselves in which were caused by someone else’s wrongdoing, irresponsibility, carelessness, or stubbornness. Irrespective of the source, trouble is trouble and it’s a guarantee that it will find us. Job 14:1 (KJV) says, that “Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble.” Jesus endorses Job’s statement in John 16:33 (NIV), where He says,
“… In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Trouble is universal and this begs the question, when I get a bad diagnosis, or my friend has been in a terrible accident, or when the bills are unpaid and I’m looking at foreclosure; in other words, when I find myself in trouble, WHAT DO I DO? The truth is that there have been other people who have prayed, and their loved ones have not recovered, or whatever they asked was not answered in the way they wanted. Psalm 46 provides us with guidance for these types of situations. We don’t know who wrote it, but the author is evidently experienced with trouble and understands how to handle it.
The first step in handling trouble is to be with the Lord. Psalms 46:1 (NIV) states: “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” When we feel exposed, He is our shelter; when we feel weak, He is our strength; and quite frankly, in anything we’re going through, God is our best hope. The first step is to go to the Lord because He is with you; He is for you and there is no better source of help.
The enemy of our soul usually points us in every direction that’s not God. And when we go in those directions and they don’t work, we have to come back to the Lord. This sets us up to feel guilty. Our faith that God will come through for us gets challenged. Don’t do that; go to God first. Remember what God has already done, and be confident that He will help.
Continue by recounting the goodness of God in the past. Everyone can celebrate God’s goodness towards us, whether you’re a Christian or not. The reality is that God has demonstrated His goodness to us time and time again. He’s bailed us out of trouble repeatedly, and we need to testify about His goodness. Recount the many things He has already done.
In the midst ofour distress, we should magnify God by recounting all He has done – like miraculous healings, divine intervention, supernatural and abnormal provisions, and peace in the midst of life’s storms. Whatever trouble we find ourselves in, it did not catch God by surprise. We have a God who sits high, but looks low. The Psalmist says, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. 2. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth gives way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea…” Psalms 46:1-2 (NIV).
Approaching challenges this way will help us to develop an attitude of gratitude and to look to God for the solution, rather than focusing on the source of the problem. This will also increase our faith and remind us that God, who has been good to us in the past, will be good to us again.
“… In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”