Sunday, March 7, 2010

MY PRESCRIPTION FOR SURVIVING ADVERSITY




How do I recover from a setback or traumatic experience? The Holy Spirit has revealed to me “the most excellent way” from 1 Corinthians 13, the love chapter, focusing on verse 13: “And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

When my faith receives a sudden, quick blow, it becomes shaken. In order to recover, I must reestablish or confirm my faith though the Word of God, as stated in Romans 10:17: “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” This is why many people fail to recover or continue to struggle in their recovery. Their faith was not set on the foundation of “the Word,” but was set on a person, place, or situation that has been changed or taken from them. Establishing my faith means I must put my total trust into the Lord’s will, away from my own selfish will. “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me,” Galations 2:20.

The next thing I need to do is shift my focus from my problem and myself to the Lord Jesus,whose ways are just. He has been waiting for me to get my faith renewed, so that He could plant seeds of hope within my spirit. It is then that I am able to have strength to “reverse” my loss. Isaiah 40:31 says, “but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.” Hope assures me that my Lord will work things out for me.

But, you see, I am still thinking about myself. In order to rise above my situation, I must understand what is written in Genesis 50:20: “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” I am obligated to share my faith and hope, in spite of my adversity and loss, by reaching out to others in love. 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 says, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.”

The Lord has given meaning, then, to my adversity and as a child of His, I have the privilege and duty to obey in faith, hope, and love, with the greatest of these being love.

Bobbi J. Craigmyle, ©1999

4 comments:

Unknown said...

I could not agree more. Very good post.

Geoff Maritz said...

To my way of thinking we all crave acceptance and love is the evidence of that same acceptance. Being able to love another must come from unconditional acceptancein the first place. Hope stems from an inner witness that encourages us to place our trust in God while waiting for that for which we hope.Faith is us allowing God to do whatever he desires in our own lives for us and at the same time believing the promises revealed to us in his word. A very interesting post, thanks my friend, God bless you.

Debbietheothermother said...

We pray without stopping
We seek until we find.
We know that we have love when we have friends.
Powerful prayers are out there, God hears them all for HE knows us each by name.
You may not change the world but if you change one soul for Jesus, then none of your efforts are in vein.
You have a great gift, your words speak from your heart
You are a child of the Most High.
You are a good friend

Brenda said...

Very inspiring post! Without faith, hope and love, how could we possibly make it.
Brenda from "Spreading God's Love"