I've been thinking a lot about trials lately and how they can strengthen us. Also I've been thinking about how it can encourage someone else watching the way you deal with those trials. What I'm talking about may not make sense to you right now, but I'm hoping by the end of this blog you will understand what it is I'm trying to convey.
You see I've been dealing with some trials of my own the last couple of weeks and with that I've been thinking a lot about past trials and the trials a couple of my friends are going through right now. Honestly, looking back and looking at what my friends are going through is encouraging me through my trials right now. Here's how:
Six months and two weeks ago my beautiful niece, Eden, passed away. Through this trial I watched as my brother's family didn't weaken, but only get stronger through her death. I saw how they drew closer to God, and how they just worshiped through everything. I don't know about you, but watching someone go through that and deal with it in that way is very encouraging. If someone can deal with the death of their daughter through worshiping the God who created her and decided she was too beautiful for the earth, that's pretty amazing.
After the death of my niece, there were many other trials that came and went, and I don't really want to get into what my trials are right now just for the sake of time but they include a broken down car thats gonna cost me over $800 to fix, a guy I've been in love with for two years, and I was sick all last week when I had tons of homework, work, and tests to study for. You can see my delima.
So as I've been dealing with those things the last couple of weeks I've been thinking a lot about Eden, and a good friend of mine who I just found out him and his girlfriend of two years recently broke up. You see, this friend of mine is an amazing young man, he's one of my best friends and I'm constantly encouraged by him and the way he deals with situations that are tough. He truly loved his girlfriend, so obviously he's really broken up about this. Him and I had a conversation last night about this and he was talking about how he knew God had a plan through this, and how he's already seeing God's fingertips in all of it. He also said he was ready for the next step and ready to find the woman God has planned for him because he knows that God has someone planned for him that's beyond his wildest dream. To hear this, I thought back to when this same friend was in the hospital just a year and a half ago with an illness that could have killed him. I started to think about how through that illness he trusted God completely and knew that God would take care of him. Yes he was in the ICU and the first doctor he ever saw was surprised that he was able to survive this illness, but he was completely relying on God through it. I told this friend that I was totally encouraged by him and the way he deals with trials, and how he completely relies on God. In return he told me about how he felt our friendship was a perfect example of how God intends us as brothers and sister in Christ to be with one another, and how that encouraged him, and how me telling him that completely turned his night around.
Can I just say, God is so amazing through trials! His love and desire for us to grow through trials in encouraging. So after all these stories and everything I've been thinking about lately, I am encouraged. I know that God's hand is upon the trials that I am going through and that he has a plan even if I cannot see it. His hand is in the trials you're going through too, dont forget that. I'm going to leave you with a passage from James, it's my favorite book of the bible and this passage has helped me through many trials in my life.
"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" - James 1:2-4
Count it joy my brothers and sisters. Love you all.
~Hannah
