Been going through tough times lately? Don't see any end in sight? Well, I've got some good news. Recovery time is here. By that, I mean, the loss you sustained in the storm is not permanent. God was only allowing you to go through some things in order to refine your character.
He never left you for a moment. And though there were times you felt you were at the end of your rope, you thought you would never make it through that test--God had already planned your way of escape. He already knew your release date.
So hear me today. Your storm came to strengthen you, not weaken you. God allowed certain things to occur, in order to expose the areas in you that needed refining. He only intended to build you up where you were broken down, straighten you where you were crooked, and heal you where you were wounded.
Have you ever heard anyone say that, "sometimes God has to hurt you to help you"? In other words, He'll use some things that don't feel so good to work on our character and move us into the place where He wants us to be.
But after we have have endured the test, He brings us out with a mighty hand!
The Bible puts it this way, "But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you" (1 Peter 5:10 KJV).
After we have learned the lessons we need to learn, and finally grasped what God is trying to teach us, we're free to move forward, having passed that test. Essentially, we graduate to the next level.
But here's the problem. It's not easy to go through gracefully.
You see, when we endure hard trials, not only do the unhealthy people and things get stripped away from us. Unfortunately, sometimes, we also lose our: Joy, peace, hope, security, drive, esteem, love, and worst of all--faith. We end up losing things God never intended for us to do without. That's because the enemy creeps in and exploits our vulnerabilities.
While God is working to build us up, the enemy is simultaneously working to break us down. Oh, but He won't win. The fight is already fixed and God promised to bring you out victoriously.
So lift up your head and know, recovery time is here. Everything you lost that rightfully belongs to you, God is going to restore it. Your time of breakthrough and rejoicing is here.
Continue to trust God. Allow Him to speak to your heart. Listen closely and you'll hear Him telling you, "I will repay you".... everything you lost, "I will repay you"... even though it seems impossible, he still says, "I will repay you".
He has seen every tear and heard every cry of despair and surely, He's going to bring you out! I don't care what it looks like right now, His Word always come to pass.
The following scripture sums up God's position on it perfectly: "So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it" (Isaiah 54:11 NAS).
Until next time... may you be empowered to prosper!
Dianna Hobbs
