Life throws at many things. Often, the ones that caught us off-guard are the ones that bring scars and wound us deeply. Trials and challenges are part of life. We are aware of this reality. Yet, whenever we go through heartaches and pain because of our hardships, sometimes, we forget that our desired result must be to overcome every situation by the enabling power of God.
The word “overcome” has been on my mind recently. This is what I got from a conversation with a friend who is encountering many unexpected situations while serving in the ministry and working as a missionary for the Lord.
The word “overcome” means to conquer and be victorious. And this is what we want to happen when we face such difficulty, isn’t it? I remember this song that says, “What does not kill you makes you stronger; what doesn’t kill you makes you a fighter.” There is a reality in this song. Hardships, trials, and difficulties make us stronger and wiser once we overcome them. The more so because we have God who is on our side as we experience those.
I had a share of it. I used to run away from whatever makes me feel uncomfortable and inconvenient. But God has another plan. He let me walk through difficult moments of life for me to have a different perspective. He allowed those sleepless nights to afflict me to finally surrender to Him instead of fighting. In the end, I came to understand the meaning of Psalm 34:19. Our life is not meant to be always a bed of roses. But afflictions linger every now and then. And it is the Lord who is able to deliver us from all of those troubles.
“Many are the afflictions of the righteous: But the LORD delivereth him out of them all.” Psalm 34:19
I like how one pastor put it into words, “we are not fighting for victory. We are fighting from victory.” Thus, our goal is to overcome and be an overcomer because we already know that we are more than conquerrors in the Lord. Easier said than done though.
So, how can we have the right perspective to overcome whatever trial or hardship we may encounter?
- Opportunity to learn and grow. In the Lord, nothing is accidental. It is always a divine appointment. If we realize that these problems and struggles are opportunities to learn and grow, no matter how seemingly impossible they are to overcome, having the right perspective will help us go along the way.
2. Molds our character. Perhaps, this is one of the hardest areas to accept and let go. Like what we always hear, God cares about our character more than anything else. He leads us to situations, places, and even people to test and mold our character. Our measurement of these character molding is found in Galatians 5:22-23,
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
How is our character as we go trough hardships and problems?
3. God watches over us. God is never surprised by what happens to us. Yet, sometimes, no matter how painful it is, He allows it to happen for a reason. And, in the end, we go back to Romans 8:28.
The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their cry. Psalm 34:15
Overcome. This is what we always remember. Let’s embrace these trials and hardships and ask God to enable us to stand by His grace and overcome every challenge that will come our way.
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