Give Him Your Troubles

"Cast your cares on the LORD
and he will sustain you;
he will never let the righteous fall." Psalm 55:22

"But he knows the way that I take;
when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.

11 My feet have closely followed his steps;
I have kept to his way without turning aside." Job 23:10,11

Those verses are so true. I love that first one, "cast your cares on the Lord." You can give him your troubles, and then not think on them so much and let them fester and bother you. Sure, we have worries and concerns right now, but by giving them to God, by relying on him to help work everything out, we no longer have to focus on them. I could easily be consumed by worry if I didn't have God to rely on. It could guide my every moment, and disrupt my sleep. Instead, I choose to pray on my troubles, and then leave them at the altar. I choose to lay my burdens at the feet of My Lord and rely on his intervention to take them away completely. I know he can do that, and will do that.

"Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. 13But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed." 1 Peter 4:12,13

This verse says straight out to rejoice in your sufferings. That just seems so contradictory to what we should be doing, doesn't it. But look at the rest of that verse! We are to rejoice in our sufferings, because through them, the glory of God will be revealed. When our troubles are over, there is going to be no doubt that it was because of God that we made it through. It's going to be so wonderful to have this testimony about how God saw to our needs and took care of us. Just think about the potential there.

It's no secret that our troubles right now are of the financial kind. When I think of the world, that is probably one of the biggest worries of people in general. Everyone worries about their finances. There are so many books and programs and counselors who deal specifically with money concerns. And in the midst of all that is a surefire way to control your finances and not have to worry about them, and that is through God, and God alone. We may be behind a bit for now, but I know that He is going to be our champion and we will make it through, and then we will have one amazing testimony. When all is said and done, people are going to ask us how we managed on so little, and we are going to be able to say that it was through the Grace of God, and through no means of our own. That is a reason to rejoice if I ever heard one!

So yes, I do worry sometimes. I worry about every day that goes by that we're not paying our bills, but I don't let it control me. When I find my thoughts dwelling on it, I say a prayer and ask God to take care of it and stop me from worrying so much. And he most certainly does. I have complete confidence in God to us through to the end of trouble.

"Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter." 1 Peter 4:16