Romans 5:3-5

"And not only that we also glory in tribulation, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character,hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

This verse has been resonating with me for a about a year now. Every time it read it God grabs my heart and says "LISTEN!" this is for you. Life isn't easy for anyone, my life has been no exception to that rule. My life has been one hardship after another. About three years ago I was ground to nothing. I felt that hope was lost and I gave up. My heart was in such pain that I felt certain it would kill me. Then God gave me this verse. My life didn't get any better at that point but my perception of my life changed instantly. The word "tribulation" means grievous trouble; severe trial or suffering. It comes from the word trībulātiō or trībulāt which means to press and squeeze and that is pretty much what it feels like when our lives become unbearable and our hearts become weak. It feels as though the very air we breath is being squeezed from us slowly and painfully. And we're supposed to be happy about it? Glory in it? When God gave me that word my first thought was, "you've got to be kidding me?", "Do you even understand what this feels like?", "I'm suffocating here and you want me to be happy about it?" But the truth is that God does know what it feels like. The pain that he feels when we reject Him, the pain that He endured when He sent his Son to die for us, The agony that Christ felt as he hung up on the cross. God knows pain. He knows more pain than we can bear. As I realized this my heart began to change. What if instead of falling on our faces before God and saying "help me, help me!" We fell on out faces and said "I trust you, I trust you" or "Thank you, Thank you!" When we face hardship that is too big for us God must do big things to save us. God will not let us fall. We just have to sit tight and hold to his promises. In that place of tortured patience we develop a faith and peace that can only come from God. God uses these times as a catalyst to bring us to the next level of out faith in God. It is in that new faith, trust, and knowledge that God can shape out character into His image. It is in this broken place that God reshapes us into the masterpiece he wants us to be. God has to press us and squeeze us just like a sculptor must do to his clay to make his artwork fit together. After all this is over, and it always ends eventually, we have hope. When I look at my life, where I've been and where I am, I have deep abounding Hope and Joy in Christ. We can't understand the mysteries of why God puts us through things but we can know that we will survive and not just survive but actually thrive! Next time your life seems dark, next time you feel stuck or hopeless read this verse and praise God. Every trial, every sorrow is another chance for you to see God at work. It is a time for God to birth something new in your life. We serve an incredible God and he can, does and will continue to do mighty impossible things!