Why do we face trials?

The economy has been hard on all of us- some more than others. Well, let me rephrase that: The public's perception of the economy has been hard on us. I say that because really, our economy WAS doing fine, even though gas has shot through the roof. But now, we have a pandemic of banks failing after they backed shaky loans on A.R.M. loans people should not have bought into. This and other factors has caused a ripple effect which has now had a dramatic impact in nearly all aspects of our (and the world's) economy. These factors have impacted everyone in the United States for the most part in a negative way. People stressed to their limits from budgetary concerns were exacerbated by the compounding effects of the recent (non) crisis.

Our problems pale in comparison to these facts and the current situation with so many of our neighbors from Houston are just recently returned to their homes 10 days after Hurricane Ike hit SE Texas, taking everything from some people.

When we do face a trial, we are quick to ask "Why me? What did I do to deserve this? Why has God forsaken me?"

Well, the real question might better be "Why NOT me?" Sometimes we bring things upon ourselves, and other times we are being tested. How can you tell the difference? Sometimes, you can't. Only with prayer and meditation can some of these answers be had. One day a few years ago, as I was driving 1 1/2 hours to an account, it suddenly hit me: We all have a cross to bear in our lives; some are bigger than others. For some it is financial, for others it is health, fidelity, or maybe job security, or any combination thereof. During these times, we may think we are the only ones experiencing what we are going through at the time, but truth be told, many others have been there before, and many more will be there after, but most importantly, many are going through the same thing you are at the same time.

You have not been singled out. Remember Job was tested for his faith in God, and lost EVERYTHING because of a wager made by Satan. Job, like the rest of us, asked why many times, and still proved his faith by not losing sight of what was first in his life- his realtionship and communion with God.

During the sermon last Sunday, Pastor Ron talked about why trials happen. While I had never verbalized why, the reasons he listed I felt were dead on:

1. Suffering develops maturity of faith (like fire tempers and strengthens steel) James 1:2-4


2. Suffering helps us identify with Christ (which is why he suffered, so he could identify with US) Phillipians 1:29


3. Suffering proves we are God's children Hebrews 12:7-8


4. Suffering helps us become holy Hebrews 12:10


5. Suffering produces righteousness & peace Hebrews 12:11


6. Suffering can lead to godliness Hebrews 12:24-25


7. Suffering allows us to minister to others in a personal way 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

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When Ron was speaking about these reasons for trials, he also gave us some startling facts:

• Since Christ's death 2,000 years ago, 43 million believers have been martyred, over 50% of which have been in the last 100 years.
• 200 million Christians face persecution daily around the world.
• 300 Christians die daily for their beliefs
  
  - Source: World Evangelical Encyclopedia www.persecution.com

Now what I am facing pales in comparison to this persecution, and I would believe our neighbors in Houston would, for the most part, agree their problems are pretty trivial compared to what some of our Christian brothers and sisters are facing.

My wife and I grew up together. That is to say, we started dating when we were 16, so we have been through a lot together. From the difficulties of being a soldier deployed, the pain of the separation to the anxiety of transitioning from the military to the civilian sector, buying a home, having children and professional downturns, we have run through many trials, and our marriage has only gotten stronger. Not because we are so devout and such great Christians, but because we comfort and strengthen each other in times of need. When I am feeling weak, she bolsters my confidence when I need it most, and vice versa. The only thing I wish I could change is the hardship she and my children have experienced for it has been difficult at times. (We have gotten a lot of love,prayers and support from dear friends and the church as well!)

I look back on those periods with a certain degree of pride AND humility- we weathered the storms with our faith, but would not have been able to do it alone. Without His strength, grace and love, we would have faltered long ago; but we are stronger for it, and I think we have a lot more character because of these trials. I wouldn't trade them for anything, for I am proud to carry my cross as a child of God.

I have also noticed during the hardships, the more we take our eye off the "problem" and keep our eyes on God, the easier the hardship becomes. When I pray and commune with God, I find it much easier to deal with the storm, and thereby become more holy (if you will), more spiritual, more understanding. And because we are more understanding after a trial, we can identify with others going through their hardships, and relate more and provide greater love and support in their hour of need.

Please share with us some of your experiences in which you faced a trial and your faith saw you through it!

Helping a brother fall

Today I learned of a situation involving someone I thought a lot of who had contributed knowingly to the fall of a brother.

John, a sales manager at a dealership where I got my start in the car business, is a young, bright and energetic, and doggedly loyal man. I thought a lot of him as he trained me to become self-sufficient in a very short period of time, and helped me get promoted to increased levels of responsibility and pay.

I have had a place in my heart for that young man, but today, I am afraid that may have changed. It seems another manager at the store, we'll call him Mike, had a gambling problem- a big one. Mike would bet on baseball games, for example, not only the winner, but the over/under, just about anything you can think of. And these weren't nickel and dime bets. These were $500/bet, so think $1,000-1,500 per game. He started by texting the bets to John who would place them with his bookie. As it turned out, Mike was not very good at betting. He lost. He lost a lot.

He also had another bad habit. Drinking. I know, it is hard to imagine a car sales professional that drinks, but he does. And when he does, like most other people that drink, he loses his inhibitions, and starts placing more bets. Crazier bets.

John, being the savvy business person he is, saw an opportunity. He started to cover Mike's bets. Then, he started sending one of the guys to the liquor store in the evening to pick up some alcohol, attempting to get Mike to open up more bad bets, suckering him in, if you will. And it worked.

In no time, Mike had run up over $25,000 in lost bets to the bookie, and more to John. See the problem yet?

It apparently got to the point where Mike was cashing in bonds for the money, still pursuing the elation of the elusive win. Again, Mike was not very good at the betting thing. In fact, he would probably have been better off betting against what his inclinations were (a reverse bet, if you will) since he lost so much. Better still, he would be better off altogether to give up both drinking and gambling.

To say I was disappointed in John would be an understatement. I was deeply saddened, in fact, disgusted that he would facilitate someone's fall like he did. Perhaps it is because I am a naive optimist, hoping and seeing the best in people, when in fact, too often the dark, ugly side is shown to our fellow man. What he did is akin to drinking in front of a recovering alcoholic, eating chocolate cake in front of an obese person trying to lose weight, or, well, you get the picture. It was bad enough to carry the bets himself, but to provide the liquor to loosen up his "mark" makes this even more reprehensible.

Because of his age (mid-20's), I know exactly what he would have said had I challenged him (and I would have if we were still working together). His response would have been something like: "I might as well take his money if he is going to throw it away." I can understand that, but it certainly is not right even in that light. People rob, steal, murder, etc., all the time, but it would be no less evil for you or me to commit any of a number of egregious sins.

Mitigating circumstances aside (if there could possible be any), his best course of action, from a fellowship standpoint, would have to be to have not offered to be the facilitator.

What are your thoughts? Have you ever had an experience in which you or someone you knew entered into a moral dilemma? I would love to hear from you.