There are multiple benefits in our suffering. 1 Peter 4:1-2 says, “Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.”

Ceased from sin because we suffered. Deep suffering takes away any appetite for fleshly lusts. It isn’t even on our radar because we are clinging to the Lord. Suffering is God’s character refining instrument. Suffering yields the fruit of humility. Humility ushers in grace. 1 Peter 4:10 says, “As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”

Have you ever considered that your suffering is a gift to others? I think of Amy Carmichael. Her ankle was crushed when she fell into an abandoned well. She spent the rest of her life suffering from that injury. She said that she would receive letters that did not comfort her. They were written by folks who didn’t know pain.

I love her poem about the harrow and the toad. Since it is copyrighted I will paraphrase. The toad is beneath the tongs of the harrow. The butterfly preaches contentment to the toad. Her book, “Rose From Brier” ministered to me as no other book has. Why? She was writing to folks in pain from one who was in pain. She knew the harrow. 

Our Savior knew the harrow. The cross is God’s instrument to set us free from the bondage of sin. Once we accept His finished work for ourselves, we enter into the harrow of character refinement. Romans 5:3-4 says, “And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations…” Why do we glory? They are God’s perfect design to conform us to His instrument. Here are the benefits, “…knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character hope.”

Peter knew the harrow. He was sifted by satan. His final words are recorded for us in 1 & 2 Peter. Remember, we are stewards of all that the Lord has given us. Every trial, adversity, being sinned against, and sinning against others is part of our makeup. Whatever the Lord has allowed us to go through is His will. His purpose is stamped on every nuance-experience.

1 Peter 4:19 says, “Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator.” We are created in the image of God to glorify Him. We glorify Him when we embrace our suffering tools. They are strategically conforming us to His will in our thoughts, purpose, and actions.

1 Peter 3:14-15 connects a very important truth with suffering and our heart. Verse 14-15 is a quote from Isaiah 8:12=13 which says, “Do not say, A conspiracy, concerning all that this people call a conspiracy, nor be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled. The Lord of hosts, Him you shall hallow; let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread.”

Peter set the stage for when we suffer for righteousness’ sake. I can tell you from personal experience, that any suffering reveals the hidden in our hearts. To sanctify means to set apart. Here is 1 Peter 3:14-15 in the J. B. Phillips. It says, “…You need neither fear their threats nor worry about them; simply concentrate on being completely devoted to Christ in your hearts…”

Mr. Phillips was conveying a key truth in any trouble. The trouble is a set up to get us off track. It is satan’s design to derail us. Our heart is easily pulled this way and that, like making taffy. Did you notice the word ‘hallow’ in Isaiah? What happened to Moses when he got derailed? Numbers 20:12 says, “…Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.”

The heart of the matter in any suffering is to stay focused on the Lord. When He is our center, nothing will be able to shake us, throw us off kilter, or derail us. Here is part of a new song.

Song of the Altar

In the midst of adversity when trouble surrounds me. I come into Your presence and I build an altar. I remember how You met me time and time again and I bow in worship.

Nothing can overtake me when I hide in You. Nothing can overwhelm me when I look to You. I set my eyes on You and I gaze into Your face. I bask in the love of Your eyes full of grace.

Hebrews 11:6 says that it is impossible to please God without faith. Our faith is under attack right now with our national derailment. We are disrupted from our normal way of life. The hidden in our hearts is being exposed. Therefore it is imperative that we take our heart before the Lord. We need to ask Him what unbelief is keeping us from hallowing Him before others.

Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” The only way we truly know our own heart is to recognize our behavior that does not exemplify the Lord. He is our Standard that never changes. When we view our actions through the truth of His word, we have a true Standard.

Isaiah 59:19 says, “So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and His glory from the rising of the sun; when the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.” Jesus did not react when He suffered for righteousness. He hallowed His Father by committing His life into His hands. Let us do the same.

1 Peter 3:8 says, “Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous.” In verses 10-12 Peter quoted from Psalm 34:12-16. Verse 11 says, “Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.”

Last night the Holy Spirit pointed out to me that the path of blessing is the fruit of fearing the Lord. We know from several verses in Proverbs that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Do we ever need wisdom! The tribe of Issachar was exemplary in this. 1 Chronicles 12:32 says, “Of the sons of Issachar who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do…”

Isaiah 33:6 says, “Wisdom and knowledge will be the stability of your times, and the strength of salvation; the fear of the Lord is His treasure.” Is the fear of the Lord your treasure? Matthew 6:20-21 says, “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
The fear of the Lord is to revere, honor, esteem, glorify, and worship Him alone. When He is our central focus, the things of this world fade. As we gaze upon Him, we are changed. Our character reflects His. Walking in the fear of the Lord is an essential part of our progressive sanctification.

1 Peter 3:10-11 described the path for blessing as we walk in the fear of the Lord. It says, “…let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.” Another verse that goes with this is Titus 3:2. It says, “To speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men.” How do you measure up?

Psalm 25:14 in the Amplified is one of my favorites. It says, “The secret (of the sweet, satisfying companionship) of the Lord have they who fear (revere and worship) Him, and He will show them His covenant and reveal to them its (deep, inner) meaning.” This is what I want. Only the Lord can reveal the hidden truths from His word. The Holy Spirit does this as we daily read to observe what He is saying to us in that moment of our lives. Then He empowers us to put it into practice.

However, hidden sins block our fellowship with the Lord. Therefore they block our understanding because we are deceived. Sin is a departure from God. Hebrews 3:12 says, “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God.” Verse 13 says, “…lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”

We are called to be a blessing. The path of obedience is strewn with grace and blessing. It looks like John 1:16. The Amplified says, “For out of His fullness (abundance) we have all received (all had a share and were all supplied with) one grace after another and spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing and even favor upon favor and gift (heaped) upon gift.”

The Lord’s role is to avenge. Our role is to bless. 1 Peter 3:9 says, “Not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing.”

As I read this, I thought about the life of a reviler. Yesterday I read a blog of a godly man’s comment of a political figure that is full of hatred. It has given me a more specific way to pray for this reviler. 

How do we bless someone through prayer? We ask the Lord to give them what they do not have. Think about someone with hatred. They are gnashing their teeth in rage. Their bitterness is like an inner acid which is slowly corroding their organs. They are destroying their health. They have no peace whatsoever.

They cannot escape the torment they have created through unforgiveness. Matthew 18:35 says, “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”

Here is a vivid example of what unforgiveness does. The Etruscan pirates’ form of torture was to tie a living person to a rotting corpse, face to face, mouth to mouth, limb to limb, with an obsessive exactitude in which each part of the body corresponded with its matching putrefying counterpart. Shackled to their rotting double, they were left to decay. 

1 John 2:11 says, “But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” I hope this gives you some direction to pray for those you know who are locked in hatred. Let their lack break your heart so that you pray for them with true compassion and understanding.

Do you know someone who is caught up in worry? Then you have an opportunity to ask the Lord to bless them with a deeper trust in Him. Worry is sin that blocks our fellowship with the Lord. Worry is rooted in the fear of what might be. It catapults us from our present into thoughts of what might happen but that we have no control over.

The Lord truly cares for us. He knows our hearts. He knows every troubling situation we face. He knows what is ahead. He prepares our way and leads us in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Jeremiah 17:7 says, “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord.” Hope is the anchor of our soul. It keeps our mind focused on the Lord alone. Think about how you can ask the Lord to bless someone you know who is struggling.

Romans 12:19 says, “Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” This is a great truth that we need to keep in the forefront of our minds.

1 Peter 2:20 says, “For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God.”

Jesus is our example when we suffer for good. Verse 23 says, “Who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously.” 

We saw this played out in Isaiah 53:7. It says, “He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth.”

Not only did Jesus not verbally react, there was not even a thought of revenge. He knew He was right, but He didn’t fight for His rights. All our words come from our thoughts. We do well to remember this when we are insulted, treated wrongfully, or slandered. 

Stephen is a great human example for us. Acts 7 is the whole account. Verse 54 says that they gnashed at him with their teeth. Picture it. Their teeth were clamped in utter rage.

How did Stephen respond? Yes, I mean responded and not reacted. They cast him out of the city and stoned him. His last words were in verse 60, “…Lord, do not charge them with this sin. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.”

The key for us is trust. I love Genesis 18:25. This verse anchored me when I faced an impossible unreasonable situation. It says, “…Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?”

Right now our nation is in a season of unreasonableness. Take comfort through trusting the only One who is in charge. Psalm 2:4 says, “He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall hold them in derision.” Verse 12 ends with, “…Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.”

Jeremiah 17:5 is a warning for us. It says, “…Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart departs from the Lord.” When we take vengeance into our own hands, we literally depart from God’s way by usurping His place. It is not ours to solve, only to trust and obey what He has called us to do in 2 Chronicles 7:14. Please join me in praying for our nation every night at 7:14.

Peter recorded our right response to suffering through Jesus’ example. 1 Peter 2:21 says about suffering, “For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow in His steps.” Verse 22 says that He committed no sin, and there was no deceit in His mouth.”

I want to pause right here. Suffering comes in myriad forms. We cannot put it into one category. I was thinking about this last night. When I was younger, if I was asked how I was, my answer would be ‘fine’ because it was an easy cop out. It didn’t require any further explanation. Usually, I found that the person was just asking out of rote.

I began my healing journey in 1983. At that point I was learning how to forgive those who had hurt me. If someone asked me how I was, my reply would be that I was pressing into Jesus. If that opened a conversation, I could explain what I was wrestling with at that time. I’m bringing this up because it is so easy to hide behind cliches or facades. 

Psalm 15:2 is a great template for a right response in our suffering. It says, “He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart.” Maybe we could practice being open. The next time someone asks you how you are, you might like to open your heart a bit. Your reply could be something like this: I’m glad you asked. Do you have a minute? That will give them an out if they don’t. If they say ‘yes’ then you can begin. Yesterday I heard discouraging news. How do you handle discouragement? 

Our suffering is an opportunity to reach out in a deeper way. The Lord set that up for us. 2 Corinthians 1:3 says that He is the God of all comfort. Verse 4 is the established pattern that He designed and desires. It says, “Who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”

We can also begin a conversation with: is there a specific way I could pray for you today? That would be an enactment of Galatians 6:2 to bear one another’s burdens. Prayer is coming alongside someone. It is partnering with them in their suffering. It gives us an opportunity to ask and receive.

So much verbal exchange is surface. It is the way of the world. There is no depth because it is not a heart to heart conversation. I have friends whose love language is quality time. That is mine as well, so our conversations are not surface or superficial. We bypassed that stage long ago.

Paul admonished the Corinthians. In 2 Corinthians 6:11 he told them, “…our heart is wide open.” Then he disclosed their hearts. Verse 12 says, “You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted by your own affections.” When we keep our emotional pain buried, we lose out on God’s way to rightly respond to our suffering.

1 Peter 1 ended with the power of the gospel. Chapter 2 started with ‘therefore’ meaning that we have to go back to what was previously said. My paraphrase of verse 1: You have heard the gospel, believed it, and accepted Jesus as your Savior. Now you have His power within to cast off any temptations to return to your former sinful behavior. 

1 Peter 2:1 in the Amplified says, “So be done with every trace of wickedness (depravity, malignity) and all deceit and insincerity (pretense, hypocrisy) and grudges (envy, jealousy) and slander and evil speaking of every kind.” Ephesians 4:22 says, “That you put off, concerning your former conduct…” 1 Peter 1:14 says, “As obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts…”

As we come to verse 2 in 1 Peter 2, I want to link something. The Amplified says, “Like newborn babies you should crave (thirst for, earnestly desire) the pure (unadulterated) spiritual milk, that by it you may be nurtured and grow unto (completed) salvation.” Linking verse 2 to verse 1, there is a clear distinction. Returning to our former way will block any craving after we have tasted His goodness through salvation.

Tasting His goodness is only the beginning. Think of food. There are folks who eat their food quickly. They eat because they are hungry, but they don’t take the time to savor it. Others will take a bite, and enjoy it. What is the difference? Value. If you truly understood that your food is your medicine, you would joyfully receive it. You would chew it carefully so that it would mix with your digestive enzymes.would joyfully receive it. You would chew it carefully so that it would mix with your digestive enzymes.

Let’s take this into the spiritual realm. Do you read your Bible because you know that it is a good discipline? On the other hand, do you read it because you know it is for your spiritual health? Psalm 19:7-11 is a great description of God’s RX for health through His word. Verse 7 says that it is His perfect tool to convert our soul. It is sure and makes the simple wise. Verse 8 says that it rejoices our heart, it is pure and enlightens our eyes. Verse 10 says, “More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.”

Jeremiah 31:14 says, “I will satiate the soul of the priests with abundance, and My people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says the Lord.” We eat a meal until we are satiated or full and satisfied. Yet are we satiated if we just taste His word? Taking a nibble here and there will not help us grow in our walk with the Lord. No. We must taste, then savor it to digest it so we can absorb it.

As we read (taste) God’s word for understanding, the Holy Spirit will highlight what He wants us to (savor) concentrate on. We bring it into our mind and (digest) meditate on it. We (absorb) apply it to our walk. It then builds us up and makes us strong in the Lord. We are able to resist the (infections) temptations, because His word is active truth (good bacteria in our (heart) gut that keeps us healthy).

1 Peter 2:2-3 says, “As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that they may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” A newborn baby has to be helped to take its first drink of life-giving nourishment.

However, a newborn in Christ needs no coaching. Salvation comes with a desire for the milk of God’s word. My dad’s parents accepted the Lord when he was three. He grew up in a Christian home. He had no desire for the word. He dutifully went to meetings, listened to his parents and others talk about the Lord around the table. He had no interest.

One night, at the age of 19, he accepted the Lord. The next morning his folks found him reading his Bible. They knew. Being hungry for the word is a true sign of a new believer. I was saved at the age of 11. That evening and into the night I devoured the whole book of John.

At salvation, we indeed have tasted that the Lord is gracious. Romans 2:4 says, “Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance.” His goodness was expressed through His death on the cross. Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Matthew 5:6 says, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.” Psalm 34:8 says, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!”

Have you tasted of the Lord’s goodness, and then have had your spiritual palate dulled through the heavy sludge of this world’s food? I have a friend who used to be a chef. He has a very discerning palate. He can taste a sauce and tell what spices are in it. It also helps him to know what spice is needed to add to his culinary creations.

Mark 4:19 is a short list of what dulls our spiritual discerning palate. It says, “And the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desire for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.”

When you are in the depths of your trial, struggling with emotional pain, what do you crave? Psalm 42:1 says, “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God.” This ‘pant’ is from a deer who knows that if it can’t get to water it will die.

I believe that is how David felt when he wrote Psalm 63. Verse 1 says, “O God, You are my God; early will I seek You; my soul thirsts for  You; my flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land  where there is no  water.”

The enemy seeks to use our trials to get us to turn from God. The Lord uses our trials to draw us closer to Him. He wants to be our sole source of comfort: physically, emotionally, and spiritually. May His love for you eclipse everything but Him.

THE POWER IN SILENCE SEPTEMBER 23 2021, WRITTEN BY MARILYN ADAMS

And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper. 1 KINGS 19:12

I’ve been thinking about Elijah in his mountain encounter with God, whose mighty power was displayed through a rock-breaking wind, an earthquake, and a fire. It didn’t seem to phase Elijah. However it was God’s still small voice that caused Elijah to wrap his mantle around his face. It was then that the Lord spoke to Elijah’s despondent heart and gave him a new commission. The power in silence is the dynamic impact God’s still small voice has on our heart. Our whole being is awakened when the Lord whispers his wisdom. We are never the same. David was a shepherd and understood the need for his sheep to be still. He wrote Psalm 131:2. It says, “But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me.” The cares of this life vie for attention, and often disquiet our soul. They choke out God’s Word. He wants us to be still so he can speak to our heart. He wants us to rest and be restored in his presence. He is ready to speak, but we need to have ears to hear his still, small voice. Holy Spirit, I ask you to help each one of us to learn the power of abiding in your stillness. Help us to quiet our hearts so that we do not miss any of your whispered words. Thank you for loving us so deeply and unconditionally. Amen. Throughout This Day: Seek to go from task to task aware of God’s presence, open to his Spirit’s guidance. (this was my devotional today posted on PC2 on online ministry)

Matthew 5:45 says, “…for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” When His sun shines, it shines on everyone. If a group is out in the rain, they all get wet. This verse emphasizes that God is not a respecter of persons. We all have trials.

However, there is a distinction for the believer. Our trials train us to be more like Christ. They are designed for each individual. They are unique, and tempered according to our spiritual maturity. Therefore whatever your trial’s magnitude is, it is divinely crafted to give you the benefits that you lack.

Trials are not a ‘one size fits all’ category. You cannot stereotype them. They are as unique as we are in our individual thumbprint. Paul had a thorn in the flesh. Our trial might be considered a thorn in the flesh, but it is nothing like Paul’s. His thorn came after he had the visions and revelations of the Lord when he was caught up into the third heavens.

Trials purify our faith for what lies ahead of us. We don’t know what the Lord has called us to walk through. That is why He brings the designer-trial. We have to be trained to fulfill what He has called us to. This may be why we go through one type of trial into another type. Like a kaleidoscope. He turns our life just a bit, and a whole new scope is revealed. 

As shocking as it sounds, I needed to fall into the ravine in 1977. It was His designer-trial to bring me to Himself. Before the fall I was a busy person serving the Lord. Yet, I knew nothing of intimate communion with Him. Through that trial He wooed me. He trained me to discern the moving of His Spirit in my life. He set me on a whole new course that I could never have imagined.

I have read that a shepherd has to take drastic measures with a sheep that continues to wander off. He will break one leg, then carry that sheep on his shoulders. The sheep so bonds with the shepherd. When it is healed it follows him wherever he goes. That sheep needed to have its leg broken. It learned obedience through its designer-trial.

Paul had to go through his designer-trials. The Lord told Ananias Paul’s future. Acts 9:16 says, “For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.” If you need a refresher on his sufferings, I encourage you to read 2 Corinthians 11:23-33. That list makes me gasp every time I read it. Yet, we still are eating the fruit of his life in Christ. He wrote 13 books in the NT.

The designer-trial that you are in right now is essential for your spiritual growth. Tomorrow, Lord willing, I want to take a deep dive into 1 Peter 2:2-3. Here are a few questions for you to ponder: am I savoring the goodness of the Lord? Has my discerning palate been dulled by the things of this world? Am I drinking deeply of His love?