This week, the Daily Devotionals are brought to us by five women who have been face to face with the question of God’s love in the midst of trials. It is all about real women, real life, and real truth.
Tell us about a challenge you have faced?
Married and with a young family, my husband and I found ourselves unemployed and back in school. We were in a major financial crisis. The savings we had eventually dwindled to nothing. The bills still needed to be paid and the kids still needed to eat but it was months before graduation and we were not sure how we were going to make the ends meet.
What happened to your faith during this hard time?
Our faith actually grew during this trial. That isn’t to say there weren’t down times. Like when the car died. Or when Christmas came around. Money issues are very hard on marriages. I think it is one of the top reasons people end up in divorce. We knew that if we were going to make it through the hard times still married we would need to do it with God’s strength and that helped us to run to Him instead of running away from our faith.
In the day to day reality of dealing with unpaid bills and trying to figure out what we could afford to buy at the grocery store and just praying the kids wouldn’t get another ear infection, it was really hard to “feel” God’s love sometimes. But deep down we knew we were on the right path for our family and our future, and so we figured with His strength we would power through the hard times and be better off in the end. Our church was very important to us during this period of our life.
Do you know why God allowed a financial crisis in your life?
We had that trial because He had something to teach us. He allowed us to struggle so we would learn to love Him better and learn to love each other better. We had to. We had no choice. We couldn’t do it on our own. It certainly was a time of learning the difference between what we need and what we want. We learned to pray for God’s protection. We learned that at the moment we are weakest, He is strongest. We learned that He provides. We learned to be humble and ask for help. We learned what a blessing it is to be able to give to others. We missed having that and now that we have plenty again we truly enjoy being generous with others.
What would you share with a friend who might be experiencing similar trials?
I would tell her to cry out to the Lord. He will hear you, He will help you and give you strength and see you through this hard time. It is not fun! But you will come through it stronger if you lean on the Lord for strength. Don’t you DARE give up. Trust His love for you even in hard times.
Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.”
God’s Word is true and I have seen some of His good plans for my future already come about. You can see it in yours too as you trust in Him!
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Thanks for sharing this story!
God is so faithful and loving even in our hardest times! Thank you for the encouraging words!
Thank you for sharing. I know when we went through a long trial of money trouble I felt like God was teaching us to spend our money more wisely.
Thank you for the encouragement!
Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” …One of my favorite scriptures! Even when we do not know “His Plans” we can be certain that He does!
1 Timothy 6:10
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
While the worship of money can obviously cause us problems, these problems can also be a catalyst for good. This doesn’t mean to jump into financial crisis looking for the eventual good outcome! It means that when we are faced with a problem (ANY problem), we are given the opportunity to do one of two things: 1) LEAN 2) RUN
Option 1 – Lean on God and His truth and His faithfulness. He promised not to leave us or forsake us. The Bible tells us that “all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose.” (Rom 8:28) What we must do is to TRUST & OBEY.
Option 2 – Run away from God’s guidance. Keep doing it your way, it’s worked so far, right? WRONG.
Our finances are an area that my husband and I are working on. Currently, we have a bi-polar relationship with this topic. We do well, we do bad. We trust, we doubt. We obey, we are defiant. We lean, we run. Praise God for his endless amount of faithfulness and patience as we learn to let go and let God.
❤
I can relate to the challenge of pain and illness. Especially when a “cure” is not in sight – As is the case of my long time battle with migraines. However, memorizing scripture and learning the lyrics to praise music can be especially helpful during the days when you are unable to read, study or even move. Even in pain I can pray and praise! Thank you for the reminder that His love is bigger than all of our pain!
Thank you again.