Through the Valleys

Today we read Romans 5-8.

The Bible reading plan that we follow each and every morning is one that I found in a book, The Divine Mentor by Wayne Cordiero.  If you follow it throughout the year, it is designed to give you a daily twenty minute read that will take you through the Old Testament once and the New Testament twice.  When we get to the middle of November, we have finished the Old Testament and we are now reading the New Testament for the second time. I have been reading this plan for over five years now and it just always seems to me that we are zzzzooooooming through good, meaty stuff when we get to this last month and half of the year. Don't zoom so fast that you miss the meat.  In today's reading we find that we are alive in Christ, free from the law in Christ, and surrounded by the love of Christ.  That is the kind of stuff we all need to be reminded of.

Today, God spoke to me through Romans 5.3-5-Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

When things are tough, it is not that God has left you; instead, God is up to something.  In the midst of the difficulty, hang with Him and He will teach you to endure.  The endurance that you learn will build your character and turn your eyes back to the hope that you are to have in Christ.  God works in any situation.  We just need to make sure that we are in the proper place spiritually to sense, to hear, to follow His Lead through our valley.

I heard of a church bulletin blooper one time that said:  Don't let worry kill you!  Let the church help. 
We have to be careful how we state things, but I do encourage you to take your worries, your troubles, and your trials to the Lord.  I believe some time with God's People this morning will do nothing but help.  I hope to see you in worship.