TODAY’S WORD FOR FRIDAY APRIL 22, 2016.
AFFLICTIONS
A depressed or painful state; misery; a cause of mental or bodily pain as sickness or calamity; a great suffering that produces sorrow; trial; adversity; trouble.
My heart is in turmoil and cannot rest; days of affliction confront me. Job 30:27.
This is my comfort in my affliction, for Your Word has given me life. Psalm 119:50.
For our light affliction, which is for about a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. II Corinthians 4:17.
Oh Lord my strength and my fortress, my refuge in the day of affliction. Jeremiah 16:19.
One of the most difficult things in life for all of us is to witness our children, young person or a family adult member suffer some affliction in their lives. The word, “affliction” refers not only to body pain like a sickness, disease, or calamity but also to a mental situation like depression.
God has given us the privilege of traveling to most of the areas of our world because we have worked in ministries with children. For us it all began right after we were married and went to Korea. There we saw literally thousands of children literally living on the streets as a result of the Korean War. Since most of them were GI babies, fathered by foreign soldiers, they were considered outcasts. Our mission was to establish orphanages for these children giving them a roof over their heads, a bed to sleep on, food and clothing, an adult living with them who loved them and cared for them plus a door to education. Before we left Korea we saw the opening of 145 orphanages housing over 6000 of these children.
Down through the years since those days in Korea we have seen children living on the top of garbage dumps, children with diseases dying in hospitals, children living in the worst possible poverty known today, children who had no food for 2 to 3 days, some right here in America, and sadly we still have children suffering such affliction all over the world.
When sin entered the world with the fall of Adam and Eve, affliction entered as well. Our minds and bodies are subject to suffering and pain. Some suffer greater afflictions than others but it is especially heart wrenching to see children with physical and mental challenges as well as children suffering because of calamities like war, earthquakes, floods and fires.
No matter if the affliction is large or small it is so easy for the victim to fall into despair and, as Job said in the verse we put above, the heart is in turmoil. But we should not forget that as Christians we can look at afflictions in an entirely different way than a non-believer in Jesus. For a non-believer there is no hope but for a believer we can look beyond our affliction in this life with the hope, as the scripture assures us, of a life without affliction in heaven with our God. Our suffering is therefore only temporary.
It is usually the case that when we are going through the tough time in life with our greatest afflictions that God does His greatest work through us. Afflictions will increase our reliance on the Lord. In the time of an affliction we will have the opportunity to share with others the strength of our faith and this will allow God to demonstrate His power through us.
We continue to ask God to make us sensitive to those that are going through times of affliction and we encourage you to do the same. Do you have a caring spirit and attitude to respond to a person who is hurting?
When you face an affliction in your life we encourage you to look for an opportunity to let others see Christ in you despite your situation. You will be surprised how much God will bless you and He will ease your affliction when you turn your eyes on Him and seek the comfort found in His Word. He is our strength and our refuge in the day of affliction.
Our memory verse is found in James 4:17.
Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.
Thank You for being our comfort and our refuge in the painful times of affliction. Help me today to have a heart that shows concern for those facing affliction in their lives. Help me to be faithful and give You the praise for the many blessings You have given me. Lead me today to that person that I can make an impact on for Your sake who is hurting and needs Your love.
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