Honor God From Where You Are

At times in our Christian walks we find ourselves in circumstances that seem unfavorable. We are promised in Scripture that we will face adversity.

"These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." John 16:33 KJV

Some of the problems we face are from the enemy to veer us off course and sometimes we have troubles because we have gotten off course already. Many times it is difficult to determine which it is that has brought you into a state of turmoil. Job is one example of a God-fearing man who dealt with trouble and there was dispute among the people involved as to what the reasons were (see the book of Job).

I am convinced that when these times come, it is not nearly as important how you got into your situation as it is what you’re going to do in it and through it. I’m not saying that a believer can’t know why circumstances have befallen him. I’m not even saying that it isn’t beneficial to know what took place to bring you into a troublesome time. Only, that when it is unclear why you are enduring something, it is more important what you choose to do in the midst of it.

For example, a few years ago my husband and I bought a new house. We were not really looking to move at the time. One day we happened upon a property that seemed saved just for us. It included every feature that we wanted in a home to raise our family in. It was more highly priced than we would have liked so just for “kicks”, we put in a lowball offer. It was accepted! Feeling blessed by God, we moved in and rejoiced. Not too long after, however, a few things started to break and cost money in repair. Also, the large yard became overwhelming to care for and pressure to adapt to a more rural lifestyle intimidated us. We began to question whether this new home was, in actuality, a gift from God or perhaps a scheme of the enemy to get us consumed with “the cares of this world” (see Mark 4:19). One day, in discussing the matter with my husband I said. “What difference does it make?” My husband was a little caught off guard so I continued, “Well, what difference does it make what brought us here? We’re here now. Let’s honor God from where we are. Let’s be good stewards and be faithful with what we have: grateful, and giving. If we honor God from where we are He will bring us to where He wants us.” That is what we decided to do (and are still doing).
You see, it isn’t always clear (especially in the midst of trouble) why things happen to us and around us. The most important thing is to honor God from where we are. Job got to the point of cursing the date of his birth but he never denied His God! (Job 3) Seek His will and His Word and allow Him to light your path. It’s a step by step process. Job refused to curse God. He may not have understood why trouble had befallen him (and what great trouble!), but he chose to honor the Lord in the midst of it. Then just look at all the blessings Job encountered after his time of testing was finished!

The Word says that we can be persecuted for our faith (although what many American believers call persecution can be embarrassing compared to what many others endure elsewhere). It also says that we can allow things into our life through disobedience and unbelief. If you know why something has happened or is happening to you or your family, Praise God! You’re ahead of the game. If you don’t know why don’t get stuck on it and spend your time frustratingly trying to figure it out. Honor God from where you are and allow Him to guide you from there. If, like Job, you were persecuted for righteousness sake then, God be praised, you will be recompensed and bring God glory. If you allowed bad things into your life through disobedience to God, you have the opportunity to let God lead you out and He still gets the glory. That’s the whole point of it. God alone is worthy to be praised!

My family has recently suffered a great loss. Our infant son died for no known reason during his birth. Some would say it was a test of our faith and my husband and I failed. Others would say that it was an attack of the enemy to attempt to stop us from serving God and disrupt our family. Still others would say that we were being punished for something we had done and we had allowed it. I know one thing for sure: I could spend my time trying to figure out which was the reason; or I could choose to love and honor God in the midst of it. I can trust Him to lead me from this point on. I can choose to not give the enemy any victory over my marriage or my other children. I can choose to continue on in my faith and service of our Lord and His church.

Please do not email me your opinion as to why things like this happen. That is not the intent of this article. It is merely to point out that we have choices in our circumstances. The best choice is always to honor God. Good times, bad times, guilty or innocent; it can not hurt to seek the Lord and bless His holy name. He is great and greatly to be praised (Ps. 96:4)!

I think of biblical accounts like Bathsheba and Joseph, Paul and Silas, and many, many others. Amidst unfavorable circumstances they chose to honor the Lord for what else better could they have done? I’m certain they, being human, would be tempted to question from whence came their trouble, but they all seemed to know the greater importance of whence cometh their help! (Ps. 121:1)
I thank the Lord for his provision and his mercy and his grace and his Church. He alone is Our Rock and our Defense. He promises to light our paths with His Word if we will only seek Him first and acknowledge Him in all our ways so He can direct our paths. (Matt. 6:33; Pro. 3:6). He is so good even when things seem so bad. I hope you all can be encouraged by this in your time of need.

~Amanda Paul
February 9, 2007