One of my absolute favorite verses comes from Genesis 50:20. It comes at the end of the amazing retelling of the life of Joseph. A young man who was sold into slavery by his brothers, imprisoned on false charges, favored by the leadership, and eventually made second in command of the entire country. His faithfulness, wisdom and willingness to care for others is inspiring! Although the sins of man had intended to harm Joseph...he stayed faithful, continued to allow God to use his life and God used his hurt and pain to make something wonderful.
There are many times in our lives when we face struggles and hardships. I know that I have had days when I have wondered "how are we (how am I) going to make it through this?" But, once we are through the difficult situation, it is often very easy to see what God was doing. He rarely does what I thought He was doing or should have done, but His plan is always best. I can only imagine how Joseph must have been feeling. It is not hard to believe that Joseph might have asked many times, "God what have I done to deserve this hardship?" But, just think about how many lives would have been lost if Joseph had given up and not been faithful. Joseph didn't know what God had planned for his life, and neither do we.
Let me encourage you today to help your children see how God uses the hard times to grow His Kingdom and shape who we are. We often shelter our children from the hardships that our family might be going through. I would encourage you to let them know about a few struggles (nothing too stressful), pray about them during devotions and help your family see that blessing that God provides. When your children face hard times, help them to see the value of seeking God's will in the situation and when it seems the circumstances have been resolved, help them to see how God used their struggles to bless them......"Although man intends to harm, God intended it for good!" Helping our children to see God's hand in their lives at a young age will help them travel through the tougher trials with faithfulness and assurance.
I know there are many of you thinking, "well, obviously she has had an easy life with only minor struggles." I have heard it before, people think that I have had some sort of privileged life because I choose to trust God with all aspects of my journey. Let me assure you that my life has been anything but easy...but God has held me in His hand the entire time and I am extremely grateful for His mercy and grace!
One of the most difficult times in my life came when I was about 13 years old. I had confided in a friend some circumstances that had been happening in our home....she had been complaining about her family, and I was trying to help her see that she really didn't have it that bad. She was concerned about what I had said and she told a school counselor. My life as I knew it was changed forever. I was now talking to counselors, police officers, lawyers, therapists and tons of other people I had never met. This confusing time came to a climax with a jury trial and me testifying about our home life in front of even more strange people. When my testimony was over and I was walking out of the court room, the wife of our pastor (someone who had cooked meals for our family, the person who had prayed with me in her living room as I invited Jesus into my heart, someone who had opened her home to me several times), she stood and shouted, "you will be cursed to hell for the lies that you told today." I just stood in shock and needed to be guided out by a nearby adult. She certainly intended to harm me, but by allowing God to work in my circumstances He has turned my hurt and pain into something that is used for the good of His Kingdom.
No matter what your current days are throwing at you I pray that you will be faithful and allow God to use your circumstances to bless His Kingdom. The World may be doing things to try and harm you or your children....the days may not be working out the way you or your children had planned....it may be hard to see how these trials could ever bring Glory to God......but, take heart, the God of the Universe knows your name and your child's name, He loves you and your child deeply and is guiding you both through this journey. He isn't causing the pain, He isn't rejoicing in the struggles, but He is an amazing God and can take the hurt and transform it into a blessing for others. Take a moment today to see how God is helping your family and using your struggle for good?
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