If God is with us, Why do we face trouble? (Based on
Judges 6)
It is true that God saved Israel from slavery: "I brought you up out of Egypt,
out of the land of slavery. I snatched you from the power of Egypt and from the
hand of all your oppressors. I drove them from before you and gave you their
land." (Judg 6:8-9 NIV)
But it is also true that we tend to not always make the wisest choices: "Again
the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord." (Judges 6:1 NIV)
In fact for some reason we have a tendency to be extremely hard of hearing: "But
you have not listened to me." (Judg 6:10 NIV)
It is also true that in this world where there is a tendency to worship self
(Aren't we the best after all?), followers of the true God will not always (or
ever) be welcomed with open arms: "In this world you will have trouble. But take
heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33 NIV)
In such circumstances we may easily conclude: "The Lord has abandoned us." (Judg
6:13 NIV)
To those who wonder such things, God has an answer for you: "Am I not sending
you?" (Judg 6:14 NIV)
Truthfully any of us will stutter when hearing such an invitation: "But Lord,
how can I save Israel?" (Judges 6: 15a)
We can quickly recount all the reasons why we are really not suited for the job,
however none of these really matter: "I will be with you, and you will strike
down all the Midianites together." (Judg 6:16 NIV)
In other words, do we truly believe that "If God is for us, who can be against
us?" (Rom 8:31 NIV)
We are the answer to making a difference in this world and bringing hope to the
hopeless. We are the assurance that God has truly not abandoned us.
Facing troubles is our opportunity to experience God fully, not in our own
strength, but in His. And believe me, with Him, nothing is impossible through
faith: "Ìf you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this
mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible
for you.'"( Matt 17:20 NIV)
Are you wondering why we experience trouble? Good! It is because God has
personally selected you to be His messenger!
Talking about the power to move mountains, a lady in New Zealand experienced
such power in March of 2011. After an earthquake, she walked slowly into her
living room, only to discover a large piece of rock embedded in her floor, next
to her favorite chair. It wasn't small either. It was the size of a dining room
table for four.
Strangely enough, nothing else was damaged. Not one of the pictures came off the
wall (Maybe she used gorilla glue to hang those?)
and
not a single glass or any other ornaments broke. Now she had to figure out a way
to get rid of that rock.
One of her neighbours also experienced something similar. A 30-ton boulder made
its way into his hallway. He found the perfect solution for getting rid of his
problem: Ebay! Ingenious! He soon learned that many were interested in that
boulder that came tumbling down from the nearby hills during the earthquake. It
sold for NZ$60,000 (US$44,300), and he was able to donate the proceeds to the
Red Cross Eathquake Appeal. It was an answer to his prayer of how to make a
difference in his neighbourhood.
Are you ready for your earth-shattering experience with God?
Rob Chaffart
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