Slideshow image
Romans 5:3-4 “We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation." (NLT)
 
 
I remember when I was a teenager working in Sox Park ,also known as Comiskey Park. It was late at night and my friends, and I were coming out of work. There were seven of us, but there was only enough space in the car for five. We then became creative and two of us chose to ride in the trunk of the vehicle. Although I don’t recommend this ever to anyone, nor am I saying this was the right choice. One thing I do remember, it was dark in there! My buddies chose to put the music pretty loud and the other guy in the trunk with me was scared for his life. As I was too but I just managed to keep it under control. It was during this exact moment that he asked me about my faith and belief in Jesus and I shared with him what Christ meant to me, and His love towards us through the entire ride. Once I shared my story, my buddy asked me if he could have Him in his heart. That night, I led my friend to Jesus, and still to this date he is serving the Lord! 
 
Sometimes we can find ourselves in the darkest of moments. One tends to get upset with God and think that He doesn’t love us. I’ve also learned that even in the darkest of times, God uses those moments not to destroy us, but to show us either an area where we need to be better or even more about who he is in our lives. 
 
Paul is using this same thought when addressing these words to the church in Rome. Rejoice when you go through problems! Although it can be easier said than done, the importance is to be able to find the context of why we are in that situation in the first place. Is it possible that God is trying to use that moment to create something in us? For Paul it was endurance, maybe for you its patience, or another its wisdom. The book of Psalms is very good in inviting us to reach in and allow our emotions to express themselves in order to know more about the character of God.
 
In a book that I am reading called, The Cry of the Soul, by Dr. Dan B. Allender and Dr. Tremper Longman III, they state, “God invites us to bring before Him our rage, doubt, and terror-but he intends for us to do so as part of worship. This is the kind of emotional struggle we must engage in if we are to fathom the nature of God’s heart for us.” God basically reveals himself in the midst of our struggle!
 
What light is God trying to bring forth in your darkness? As we continue in our fast, take the moment to ask God to give you wisdom, and context to your darkest moments and areas of your life. 
 
Prayer:“God, I thank you for never allowing things to happen to our lives for no reason. There is always a learning moment, out of any situation and circumstance, and you are always looking to cause us to advance and learn. Even in our darkest moments Lord! Help us to see the light and the blessing behind them, so that we can be the men and women you have called us to be. In Jesus Name, Amen!”