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January 24, 2022
From Series: Life Lessons Learned from the Bible - Psalm 23:6
You may be thinking that your life is a recurring episode of nothing but bad and negative things happening but there’s more to the story.
God promises to have only goodness and mercy to follow you all the days of your life in Psalm 23:6. We are also reminded in Romans 8:28 that all things work for the good of those who love God, and in Deuteronomy 31:6 that God will never leave you or abandon you.
Even in your difficulties God is with you, and if God is with you then bad circumstance cannot stop you from reaching success (Romans 8:31).
God's protection, His mercy, fulfillment of what He promised you, and His goodness is yours - not just sometimes but always. This makes those bad and negative experiences just part of the process, not how your story will end.
Life can be tricky if you are not able to see it from God's viewpoint. It will trick you into believing nothing is happening and that things are getting worse. Or that you are cursed and nothing good will ever happen; because whenever you take two steps forward, you are knocked four steps backward.
But life moves differently when you have a relationship with God because you are now 'living in Christ,' and this qualifies you to not have the same outcome you may see others have (Romans 8:17). Your outcome will always end up good.
The key is finding out what is prompting or being used to make you feel discouraged and frustrated. It will help you to no longer be persuaded to have these feelings or beliefs.
For example, pride. Pride is one word with many meanings. Most people have a hard time detecting the main cause of their problems because they don't realize most of their feelings are associated with pride. One way to help figure out if pride is the source of the problem is the usage of "I." Anytime you make it about "you," what "I want," or alway play the victim, pride will be a good place to start.
Let’s take a deeper look. When you struggle with impatience you become someone who is easily frustrated when you don't see your expectations met. Impatience (a trait of pride) can open the door for a slew of negative thoughts to flood into your mind bringing you further down in despair. Impatience is a distraction designed to deter you from staying on track while bringing all kinds of unnecessary agitations.
My impatience came from fear of failing. As a young person I dealt with broken promises and failures and these occurrences planted a deep seed in my mind of unbelief. So, unless I saw something happening, I was doubtful of its success. But God reminded me that He is someone that can be trusted; what He said He will do will happen and He is unlike people who disappoint. "He is not human that he should lie, not a human being that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?" - Numbers 23:19.
It’s not that your life is cursed, doomed, negative, or any other misinformation being fed to you, it’s that they are necessary or needed to help propel you to success. Whatever you may be going through may be preparing you for what you asked for.
“Life lessons can be full of surprises and can be complex at times nevertheless they are necessary to help us learn. If you look at life lessons from a victim's mentality, then you will always see your life as something negative and miss the messages being taught." - From Book: It's Ok To Be Single
“Life lessons can change the trajectory of your life for the better and give you a new outlook on life. If you focus on learning from your life’s lessons, they can be the driving force for your success. What you learn can bring peace because answers bring peace. And if you trust your Designer (God), they will help you make sense of the lessons you are going through.” - From Book: It's Ok To Be Single
Once you have figured out what’s motivating you to believe your life is nothing but a recurring episode of negative events, you will be able to go through your difficult or uncomfortable life’s process with a positive outlook, because you know in the end, it will work out for your good.
Your discomfort can seem so overwhelming that you are not able to see the good – it seems hidden. But good comes in many ways. Your experience may be there to bring you closer to God. Or it may be there to get your attention. Or it may be there to prevent you from getting into trouble. But even amid the chaotic atmosphere that you may be surrounded by, the opportunity to be successful is there. Just remember not to miss your current opportunities by becoming frustrated and worried when things don't go the way you expected.
Since we know that in ALL (not just some but all) things God turns them into good for those who love Him and who have been called according to His purpose, and that God is someone you can have FULL confidence in, don't look at your life as negative. Know that even during your bad experiences you will see the goodness and mercy of God – this is Christian (Kingdom) living!
The Bible is your guide for life - And prepares you for life!
