"You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy." Psalm 30:11
In His Word Jesus declared, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:13)
Unfortunately, because of the nature of this fallen world, trials will come and will continue to come until Jesus returns and wipe every tear (Revelation 21:4). The issue is not: How can I prevent trials? but rather: How can I best deal with the trials that comes my way? and how can I grow from the circumstances that I am in?
Let’s take a look at the life of Joseph. In the Bible, Joseph, endured plenty of trials. His own brothers were so jealous of him that they decided to throw him in a ditch and leave him there to die. One of his brothers had some pity on him, and instead of leaving him there to die, the brothers decided to sell him into slavery where he ended up in Egypt. At this point, one would hope that the story gets better, but unfortunately that was not the case. While being in Egypt, Joseph was sent to jail due to a false accusation. When undergoing trials as such, it is easy to get angry and start yelling: God! Where are you?! This is not what I signed up for! If you love me, why am I going through all of this? How can something good possibly come out of this?
I believe that it is okay to be honest with God about your feelings. He wants you to talk to Him, and looks forward to enwrapping you in his love, peace, and comfort in the midst of your trials. However, when we are angry, we have to remember not to sin (Ephesians 4:26) and keep in mind that God is bigger than what we are going through. Although it is hard to see the silver lining when going through agony, this truth must still remain embedded in our hearts: God has a plan and He will work all things together for good (Romans 8:28).
Now let’s get back to the story of Joseph. Joseph ended up getting out of jail because God gave Him the ability to interpret a dream that the Pharaoh so desperately wanted. Since Joseph was the only one that was able to interpret Pharaoh’s dream, Pharaoh made him ruler of Egypt. He was second in command-- right under Pharaoh. This just goes to show that God has the antidote that will release you from your entrapping situation. Just trust Him. Furthermore, when a horrible famine came in the land, Joseph brothers—the ones who sold him off to slavery-- went down to Egypt to buy grain. The brothers went up to Joseph and gave him money to buy grain (the brothers did not know that they were asking to buy grain from their brother Joseph). Joseph had every right to reveal himself and tell them flat out, “No!” because of how they treated him. However, because his trials made him a better person, Joseph instead said, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” (Genesis 50:20). Joseph blessed his brothers even when they cursed him.
God used Joseph’s trials to help him to become the strong, gracious, loving, and merciful man that he needed to be in order to someday be ruler of the land of Egypt. This makes me wonder: What trials are God using in your life right now that is getting you prepared for who He has called you to be? Get better, not bitter, and remember that Jesus loves you and will make a way.
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