Spiritual Trials

 

    Spiritual trials are examinations of spirit.  It is when your faith is under fire and you have to decide or defend it.  Spiritual trials is when you face tribulation in life and is seen in how you react to it.  It is a time when you learn more about yourself, grow in your relationship with God, or faulter and walk away.  

    Spiritual trials purify you or reveal the truth about you.  Fail and you show that you are a slave with a heavy burden that comes from a life of sin.  Win the trial and you are blessed.  Endure fire and flood to find great abundance in peace, wisdom, pure heart, and freedom.  You can overcome this world and need nothing.

    When you are facing trials you need to face it in your faith and not just the circumstances.  There is no room or time for doubt.  If you allow doubt in, then you will be rolled around in the emotional and physical waves of life.  You will be carried around in the current where ever it wants to take you.  You will crash into the rocks of life with no defense.  That is why you need to be working out your faith everyday, so you can swim strong and steady in the currents.

    If you have doubts in life it will lead to moodiness and irrational behavior.  A solid foundation in your faith will help you control your emotions where they influence you, but do not control you.  True faith will give you rest and help you walk in all aspects of life steadfast.  You are able to see that nothing in life can shake the truth.  

    It sounds so easy, but there are so many aspects in life that make us waver or become unstable in the moment.  Basically when we take our focus off of God, we become unstable.  The things is not even the strongest Christian you know is stable all the time.  We all have ups and downs in life and in our faith.  We have to all work at it and grow your endurance to become complete.

    Some of the things that make us unstable are triggers.  When we hit interactions that trigger a past trauma, we are very likely to act out of character.  It take time to heal completely from a severe emotional or spiritual wound.  Think about the scars you have on your body.  How long did it take some of those wounds to heal and there is still a scar.  God can even heal the scars, but it doesn't happen over night because we don't let him just take it.  We keep holding onto it.

    Another thing that can make us unstable is choosing feelings over the foundation of truth found in God's Word.  God is true.  This truth withstands time.  It never changes.  It is the most steadfast thing we have in our lives.  Yet, we still get caught up in the moment and distractions which make us temporarily forget the truth.

    God will allow issues to drive you.  He wants you to work through your issues and not hide from therm.  The more you work through them with Him, the stronger you become and the closer you get to Him.  Spiritual trials are a part of the maturing process.  You will keep facing the same trials over and over until you learn the lesson or defeat the challenge.

    You may waver if you yield to reason.  Life reasoning does not always align with the faith that God calls you to develop.  God's way defies reason more times than not.  When you are in at cross-roads, that is when you need to dive into God's Word for direction.  It is your anchor in this world.  It helps you maneuver in the unseen world while physically in this world.

    Another things that can make your waver are circumstances.  If you can't sense or see God working in the circumstances, then you are likely not going to do the faithful thing.  He will hide in circumstances sometimes to help us grow.  Faith after all is a leap.  It is not easy until you get used to it.  When you get through it, then you can see all He did in hindsight.  It is an important process that we all go through.  If you push God's Word away when things get confusing, then you may never find the amazing gifts that God is giving you through this trial.

    Listening to negative counsel is dangerous.  That can lead to a spiritual trial, but it is also a testing from Satan.  You need to be careful in whom you listen to.  When you need counsel, then seek out wise counsel from a strong Christian who will speak hard truths, but in a loving manner.  Your counselor needs to be in God's Word to direct you soundly.  

    Be careful who you trust, allow in your inner circle, or hang out with casually.  The fall away from God usually happens slowly.  It is better to be cautious and wait to see if they are a good fit for your life.  You need to have people in your inner circle that will tell you the truth even if it hurts your feelings.  People that you will listen to without getting defensive.  People that will stick with you when things get hard.  Trust God to put these people in your life and then cherish them.  

    Don't hesitate to ask God for what you need and He will give it to you abundantly: wisdom, wise friends, true family, stronger faith, and more.  He will not rebuke anything you ask that will bring you closer or keep you close to Him.  He only rebukes the prideful, lazy, and selfish.  Do not waver, but stay loyal to God.

Psalm 66:8-12, Proverbs 17:1-5, John 16:31-33, & James 1:1-8