Adversity Reveals God's Faithfulness

I will praise the Lord at all times;
His praise is always on my lips.
My whole being praises the Lord. . . 
Glorify the Lord with me,
and let us praise His name together. . . 

Those who look to the Lord will have every good thing. .  .

People who do what is right may have many problems,
but the Lord will solve them all.

-Psalm 34:1, 2a, 3, 10b, 19

We will never know in a personal way the faithfulness of Christ apart from adversity. As a result, our faith in Him would never increase. It would remain static. One of the primary reasons God allows us to face adversity is so that He can demonstrate His faithfulness and in turn increase our faith. If you are a believer, you have made a decision to trust Christ with your eternal destiny. But you will not experience His faithfulness in that particular area until you die. God wants more from you and for you than simple intellectual acknowledgement of His faithfulness. It is His will that you experience it now.

If our lives are free from pain, turmoil, and sorrow, our knowledge of God will remain purely academic. Our relationship with Him could be compared with that of a great-great-grandfather about whom we have heard stories, yet never met personally. We would have great admiration, but no intimacy, no fellowship. There would always be a sense of distance and mystery.

That is not the kind of relationship God wants with His children. Through the death of Christ, God has opened the way for us to have direct access to Him. He went to great lengths to clear the way so that nothing stands between Him and His children. There is potential now for intimacy between us and our Creator. . .

God is in the process of engineering circumstances through which He can reveal Himself to each of us. And both history as well as our personal testimonies bear witness to the fact that it is in times of adversity that we come to a greater realization of God's incredible faithfulness to us.

-From How to Handle Adversity by Charles Stanely; part of The Inspirational Study Bible: New Century Version by Max Lucado

Can you remember a time when you were in desperate circumstances? What was the cry of your heart? When you have the opportunity, do as David did - praise God.

God, I will thank you forever for what you have done. With those who worship you, I will trust you because you are good.  -Psalm 52:9

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