Supernatural Comfort

Pep talks, whether we give them to our self or someone else gives us one, are usually rather useless and anti-climactic. They do not change our situation and the words ring with an empty echo in our soul. People mean well, but their words seem trite compared to our issues.

God gave us dozens of stories in His Word, with situations and outcomes similar to ours. He gives us the root cause and solution for each scenario too, so that we can draw comfort from the lives of these ancient Saints.

Jesus reminded us that we would have trials in life, just like He did; but then He comforts us with the revelation that He already overcame these trials; so He can help us through them, since He lives within us (Romans 15:4; John 16:33).

Paul, an accomplished soldier and statesman, lived a successful life until he met Jesus on the road to Damascus in broad daylight. He ended up blinded by the risen Jesus' great light, and this caused him to spend time in retrospection, introspection and meditation until his eyes healed.

From this experience and his future persecution, he learned to rejoice in every situation, because He knew that God hid the seed for a miracle within every one of them. If nothing else, trials teach us patience, just as his did.

After meeting Christ, Paul's life had so much more peace, because he allowed patience to do her perfecting work during the trials of life (2 Corinthians 1:3). God actually gave him rest for his soul as well as his body (Matthew 11:28; Hebrews 4:3).

As we learn from these examples, we count every trial as a joyous occasion too; and we develop this same patience, which perfects our faith (2 Corinthians 1:4). If we seek Him first, God always comforts us in times of discouragement and tribulation (2 Corinthians 7:6).

As we draw near to God, and trust only in Him, He provides for us in such magnanimous ways that we cannot help but to shout it from the rooftops (and post it in our social media accounts) (Psalm 73:28). In times of illness or grief, and even on our deathbed, God sustains us (Psalm 41:3).

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for delivering us whenever we call on You (Psalm 50:15). In our weakest moments in life, You give us Your strength. We end up boasting in the victorious outcome of our trials, because of the supernatural work, which You accomplish for us in each one of them (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

You are our refuge and strength, and You remove our fear by consoling us throughout our lifetime (Psalm 46:1-2; Isaiah 40:29). You are our Father of Lights and we glorify You and give You all the praise for giving us Your character, nature and gifts (James 1:17). Thank You for allowing us to cast our burdens on You, for sustaining us and caring for us, and for not allowing life to overcome us (Psalm 55:22).

Thought for the Day:

Through the comfort and patience we learn through reading the scriptures, we develop hope, which keeps us from feeling shame and discouragement during times of trouble and trials. - Romans 5:5, 15:4

Healing from Trauma - Part 2

We all finally reach the point in life where we totally surrender to the will of God (Ephesians 2:10). The fears of the future no longer etch away at our faith, because God proves Himself faithful by His intervention in our current issues.

During times of relocation and restoration, God hides us under the shadow of His wings. We heal physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally (Psalm 63:7). His love sustains us.

God encourages us through long time friendships, as well as new friends who love us unconditionally as He does. He makes His presence known within us and we flourish under His gentle care.

We start to notice the seeds for a miracle, which God places in every trial. We learn to look beyond the momentary afflictions to the promises, which God gives us through His Word and His world (2 Corinthians 4:17; 2 Peter 1:4).

He teaches us that negative emotions are arrows pointing to a wound in our soul, which needs healing ( www.theophostic.com ). God's Spirit continues replacing the negative aspects of our personality with His fruit (Galatians 5:22-23).

He gives us the mind of Christ, which puts more emphasis on the eternal than the temporal, more fulfillment from the spiritual than from the carnal, and makes us appreciate that our identity comes from Christ in us , not from our own strengths and accomplishments (Colossians 1:27).

We realized for the first time, that we really are already crucified with Christ, even though we still physically live on this earth. We are never truly abandoned to survive the trials of this life alone, because Christ gives us His faith and actually lives in and through us (Galatians 2:20).

God teaches us to rejoice in every situation and to float with the ebb and flow of life, because He is the Lord of all (1 Timothy 6:15). He proves to us that He will never leave or forsake us, regardless of the circumstances (Hebrews 13:5).

Surrendering to the love of God is how we can enjoy the peace of God, which floods our soul and transcends any human reasoning, as it guards our thoughts and emotions through the presence of Christ Jesus abiding within us (Philippians 4:4-7).

Prayer:

Father God, I am amazed that for even one moment I thought that I could save myself. I learned at 18 that You were the Savior of my spirit, but it took me thirty more years to learn that You are also Savior of our body and soul.

There is nothing this world can throw at us that will ever knock me down again, because nothing can ever separate us from Your love (Romans 8:35-39). With Your mercy and grace in our life, we can look forward to the miracle, which comes from every trial which we will ever experience.

Thought for the Day:

Worry is the toll we pay for traversing the trials of life without trusting in the Lord.