If your Lord calls you to suffering, do not be dismayed, for He will provide a deeper portion of Christ in your suffering. The softest pillow will be placed under your head though you must set your bare feet among thorns. Do not be afraid at suffering for Christ, for He has a sweet peace for a sufferer. God has called you to Christ's side, and if the wind is now in His face, you cannot expect to rest on the sheltered side of the hill. You cannot be above your Master who received many an innocent stroke. The greatest temptation out of hell is to live without trials. A pool of standing water will turn stagnant. Faith grows more with the sharp winter storm in its face. Grace withers without adversity. You cannot sneak quietly into heaven without a cross. Crosses form us into His image. They cut away the pieces of our corruption. Lord cut, carve, wound; Lord do anything to perfect Your image in us and make us fit for glory! We need winnowing before we enter the kingdom of God. O what I owe to the file, hammer, and furnace! Why should I be surprised at the plough that makes such deep furrows in my soul? Whatever direction the wind blows, it will blow us to the Lord. His hand will direct us safely to the heavenly shore to find the weight of eternal glory. As we look back to our pains and suffering, we shall see that suffering is not worthy to be compared to our first night's welcome home in heaven. If we could smell of heaven and our country above, our crosses would not bite us. Lay all your loads by faith on Christ, ease yourself, and let Him bear all. He can, He does, and He will bear you. Whether God comes with a rod or a crown, He comes with Himself. "Have courage, I am your salvation!" Welcome, welcome Jesus!
Difficult times always make us realize the true value of good times. Only a hungry person can appreciate the taste of a loaf of bread- however hard and old that loaf may be. Only a homeless person can truly appreciate the value of a roof over the head- even if it’s in an old unpainted building. Only the blind can appreciate the true value of sight- even if it’s hazy. And so on. So problems and difficulties teach us to better appreciate the good times. They are very important or else our lives would be partial. God is ALWAYS with us; never think, even in your wildest dreams, that He can ever forsake us. If you have been through only good times, you may have forgotten Him, because you were too busy celebrating and enjoying life. He was always there watching over you and keeping you out of harm’s way. It is only during your difficult times that you turn to Him. When things get out of hand you started cribbing and complaining that He has left you to the wolves. No, that’s not true; He was and is always there by your side. He’s now busy solving your problems and showing you a way out of the mess you are in. It is, perhaps, His way of showing the other side of life; of making you realize that things do go wrong and sunshine as well as rain should be taken in your stride. He sends rain to you to make you appreciate the warmth of sunny days. He puts you through difficult times to teach you the value of good times. It’s His way of teaching you to see the silver lining. You will not crib about the huge electricity bill, because you are earning enough to afford a good house with lights and heating gadgets to keep it warm. You will not feel irritated with the out of tune singer in the row behind you because it means that you can hear well. You will not feel miffed with your daughter for having dropped coffee on your clothes, because it means you have a family to come home to. Appreciate what you have and have thank the Lord for all that He has given you instead of crying for what you don’t have.
The battle of good versus evil is the oldest and most re-occurring story tale in the book of life. It never ends because no matter how you cut off the tail of evil, it will always grow back again and again. This old story will always continue into infinity until we closely examine our past errors to prevent giving the snake a new head in the future. You can destroy a demon, but a new one will always come back later in time. You can bring down a corrupt leader, but another one will rise up again with time. As long as the ego overcomes the heart of a man, evil will always exist, and the enemies of God will continue to multiply and thrive. If a tree is bearing bad fruit, you do not destroy the tree by cutting off its branches or eliminating its fruit, but by destroying its roots. I want you to look at the world as this poisoned tree. Even if we eliminate our enemies today, we will create new ones tomorrow. The forumla to cut off the head of the snake once and fall is very simple, and this basic solution is written in all your holy books — 'LOVE IS THE ANSWER'. The strongest counterspell to destroy all forces of black magic is love. Pure unconditional love. However, to be able to emit the right frequency of love, one must first succeed in their own personal battle of good versus evil: heart (conscience) vs. mind (ego). Once you learn how to use your heart to embrace all living things as you do your own reflection, and use your heart to detect truths and dictate your actions, your heart will not be fully activated to love all of mankind the right way. Where there is love, there will be truth and light. Take away the love or truth, and we will forever remain in the dark. Truth, light and love must all co-exist in perfect harmony to overcome evil on earth. And they cannot just be secluded to one part of the world, but reign as divine royalty across the entire globe.