Read the Word:
1 Peter 1:3-9
Meditate on the Word:
Life can be very hard sometimes. We go through things that cause us pain. We suffer illnesses, accidents, or even injuries inflicted by others. We see death and destruction in the news. We see people, even people with strong faith, go through debilitating diseases, and some even succumb to them. It can really start to make us wonder why God would allow these things to happen.
One reason can be that God is using these things to, as Peter points out, prove the character of our faith. Our faith is not proven during good times, but during bad. Due to skyrocketing costs, I recently changed my homeowner’s insurance policy. I know that the company and policy that I selected sound good on paper, but I will never know exactly how good the policy is unless something happens to my house.
God, of course, knows the strength of our faith. He does not allow these various trials to prove our faith to Him. He allows these trials to prove our faith to us. We and others can see exactly how good the God we serve is during various things that happen in our lives. The joy in the Christian life is not found in freedom from suffering; it is in the goodness of God in our suffering.
Pray the Word:
Thank the Lord for something specific that you have gone through which has proven His goodness to you.
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