Be Prepared, it will come

    

I Peter 4:1-2, 12-19

Suffering for Christ can deepen our walk with Him.

The first time I read through this passage, I felt discouraged, thinking about suffering.  There is a certain kind of fear that lingers on the edge of my mind when I consider suffering.  So I read the passage again, actually several more times, trying to grapple with that sense of doom that was trying to discourage me. 

I noticed that there are several things the Christian believer is told to do in order to prepare for the time when some kind of suffering will come.  As we prepare ourselves, our walk with God deepens.  Being prepared is what will carry us through those dark times of suffering, no matter what form the suffering may take.  Recognizing that there are things I can do to handle my suffering better gives me a renewed sense of power for facing whatever may come in my future.

How does a Christian prepare herself for that inevitable suffering?  We have all had suffering of one kind or another in our lives, and will no doubt have it again, so we may as well prepare, right?  I found several things I can do to be better prepared for the next time:

     1. Arm myself mentally (v.1).  That is the first step… let God help me see/understand the circumstances I face from His point of view.   

     2. Don’t be taken by surprise (v.12).  Remember that God allows suffering for a good reason, and He will help you through it because He wants you to become stronger in your faith and walk.

     3. Change your way of thinking about suffering (v. 13).  Instead of bemoaning your situation, ask God to help you see His hand at work.  When you do that, you will remember that God will be helping you face the situation.

     4. Think ahead (v.13).  Do what a runner does and think ahead to the goal you have and the reward if you succeed in your quest.  Our goal is the presence of God in our lives now and heaven in our future.  No matter what suffering we may have, the end result will be the same … eternal joy in heaven.

     5.  Do not be ashamed to trust God in your suffering (v.16).  Verses 15-19 remind me that everyone suffers, but I have no suffering compared to someone who does not know the Lord.  How many times have you (as I have) said, “I don’t know how someone could handle this if they couldn’t trust God”?  That is the principle at work in these verses.

    6. Let yourself continue to grow stronger in your faith (v.19).  Do not allow your suffering or your insecurity about handling your suffering deter you from trusting God. That will speak volumes to those outside the faith, or who are weak in their faith, as they observe how you handle your suffering.

Enduring hope

I Peter 3:8-17

What is it that keeps our HOPE alive through troubled times, or times of suffering and gets us through them? This passage from First Peter lists characteristics God looks for and wants to develop in us as His children: 1) be like-minded, i.e., unified; 2) be sympathetic; 3) be loving; 4) be compassionate; 5) be humble; 6) be forgiving.

This isn't all I found.  Here is the rest of my list.  

   7.   be a blessing (v.9)

   8.   be godly in how you speak (v.10)

   9.   be Christ-like in your actions (v.11)

   10. be peace-loving and peace-creating (v.11)

   11. be fearless (v.14)

   12. be holy (v.15)

   13. be ready to be a good witness to others (v.15)

   14. be gentle (v.16)

   15. be respectful (v.16)

That is quite a list, isn’t it?  I know I have not conquered this list yet.  God still has a lot to do in me to develop my HOPE but my goal is to allow God to help me continue to develop these characteristics in my life.  By doing so, God is preparing me to endure whatever comes even if that means suffering in some way.

Goaded

Ecclesiastes 12:11

The words of the wise are like goads …

When I first read this, my reaction was negative because when I think of “goads” I think of a cattle prod, something uncomfortable or even painful.  I looked up “goad” in the dictionary and as happens so often, I gained new understanding of the meaning of this verse by doing so!  “Goad” is indeed a prod, such as an electrified pole that pushes cattle along.  The other meaning of the word is “an encouragement or a stimulus,” and that puts a whole new layer of meaning to this verse.  The words of a wise person should be stimulating the hearers, encouraging them to do the right thing, to make wise decisions.  At times that might mean speaking uncomfortable things to them.  When I speak wisely, my goal should be to gently but firmly force the thinking and action of the hearer towards godly thinking and doing.  When I do that, I will be goading them along the path of righteousness.

When I read this in my devotions this week, I immediately thought of the Sunday School lesson I was studying for the week from I Peter 2:4-15.  There are goads that God uses in our lives to push us along toward spiritual growth, gently prodding us along. 

            v.5 = be a living stone, built to be a holy priesthood

            v.5 = offer acceptable sacrifices

            v.6 = believe in Him

            v.6 = never be put to shame

            v.7 = receive honor

            

I Peter 2:11-16 gives us the goads we use to point others to Christ, ways we can prod them along the path of righteousness. 

         v.11 = live pure lives

         v.12 = conduct yourself honorably

         v.13 = be submission to authority, wherever it is

         v.14 = do not abuse your freedom 

 

I need God’s goading to push me along into a deeper walk with Him and at the same time I want God to use me to prod others!

More thoughts on HOPE

I Peter 1:13-25

Our hope in Christ changes how we view the world and live in it.

I read recently that “Living as strangers in this world … [means that] we are no longer driven by the culture’s values and demands.  We fight the battle of the mind …”

This statement got me to thinking about how we fight this battle of HOPE so as I read through I Peter 1:13-25, I kept looking for clues.  I invite you to do this same activity right now.

Get some paper and a pen and make two columns.  Label one column “What God does” and label the other column “What we do.”  Then, as you read through this passage verse by verse, note what you find that indicates the role God plays and/or the role a Christian believer plays in the development of HOPE in one’s life.  Here is the list I found.  I would love to hear what you found!

WHAT GOD DOES:

v. 17 = acts fairly

v.18-19 = provides a means of redemption

v.18 and 23 = provides salvation that cannot be destroyed

v.21 = raised Jesus from the dead

v.21 = provides a reason for faith and hope

v. 23 and 25 = provides His Word [that never changes or dies or fades away)

WHAT WE DO:

v.13 = be ready for action

v.13 = be alert (sober-minded)

v.13 = be focused on Jesus’ grace

v.14 and 22 = be obedient

v.14 = be different (do not be conformed to sinful ways of thinking and acting)

v.15 = be impeccable (i.e., “holy”) in your conduct

v.17 = act reverently (respect all that God has done for us and treat others with respect)    

v.22 = love others from a pure heart

What else did you find for these two columns about HOPE?

So much of the power of our HOPE depends upon our response to what God has so abundantly provided for us.  Let’s pray that together we will increase the strength of our HOPE so it can help us face these uncertain times more confidently, displaying God’s love and mercy to others.  By doing so we will be bringing HOPE to others as we increase our own.  It is a win-win scenario!

HOPE

I Peter 1:1-9

v.3: Blessed by the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Because of his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

 

The Bible handbook I use for background information about each book of the Bible says that the key word for I Peter is the word “hope.”  There are some interesting, challenging, and thought-provoking lessons hidden in this passage from chapter one.

   

My hope is alive.  Did you notice that in verse 3?  It is a living hope because it is hope based on the resurrection of Jesus.  This hope is founded on the grace of God. 

What happens when you have hope that is alive?   When you read the remainder of the verses in this passage, you can find several distinguishing characteristics of that ALIVE HOPE. Here is what I found:

     v.4 = it is heaven-based and therefore does not die or fade away;

     v.5 = it is guarded by God Himself;

     v.6 = troubles and /or suffering do not destroy its power;

     v.7 = it glorifies Jesus in our lives;

     v.8 = it gives us the ability to have joy no matter what our circumstances may be.

    

What does hope do for us?       

     Hope gives us light when life is at its darkest;

     Hope gives us motivation when we become discouraged;

     Hope gives us joy when there is no joy in our circumstances;

     

How is HOPE helping you cope with the challenges in your life?  Is there someone you know who needs to be reminded of the HOPE we have as children of God?  Call them or send them a message to encourage them in that HOPE.

My beauty

I Peter 3:4 Let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.

I have never felt beautiful and have often joked that my beauty is just well-hidden from view.  In a more serious sense, however, aside from the jest, this verse tells me that what God sees as most beautiful, most precious, about me is indeed emanating from within me.  My true character, honed by my Savior’s work of grace and mercy in my heart and in my spirit, is my gentle and quiet spirit.  That gentleness and quietness is like Jesus’ spirit, displayed for all to see in His life on earth.  The beauty of that way of life is the imperishable beauty and it is what I most want people to see and to remember about me when I am no longer living on this earth.