This Was One of Those Weeks!

SO... this week has been a DOOZIE! I mean a certifiable Category 5 hurricane that came out of NO where! There are those moments in your life where so many random, difficult things violently bombard you at the same time, that you KNOW it is the devil.  Even the secular genius would say it's statistically impossible!  The devil has over played his hand!

This was one of those weeks!  The question is ... how do I respond? What does the Lord want of me?  Thankfully the He left me some directions.  (Literally, a stranger walked up to me and gave me this verse!)

1 Peter 4:12 &13 says "Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed."

How I go through these trials reveals where my trust is.   God uses all things, even my response in trials, for His glory.  He wants me to be victorious as I walk through the fiery trial.

Practically speaking for me it looks like this:

1.  I am trying to capture every thought.  If it doesn't bring glory to Him, I don't entertain it.
2.  I look for Him in the circumstance.  He is with me in it. I need only look to see evidence. (Like the stranger giving me this verse!)
3.  I pray not to sin in it.  I may suffer deeply and want to defend myself, but my situation pales in comparison to what my Lord suffered for me.  I want to be blameless before Him.
4.  I trust Him to fight the battle.  My hope is in Him and not in circumstance or man. These battles are spiritual battles and will be won in the spirit realm, by my Defender.  
5.  I remember that I am His, and it is His responsibility to take care of me. I am in the best Hands ever...Hands that have scars in the palms that prove His love for me!
6.  I remember what my husband told me once, when I was whining about being very pregnant..."This too shall pass."  Ha!  Our Lord allows me to go through trials, but He NEVER leaves me in them.  He will bring me safely to the other side and I will look more like Him :)
7. I am praising Him in the middle of the trials, because He is ALWAYS worthy to be praised!  

Whatever you are facing, giants, storms, nay sayers, doubt... PRAISE HIM... HE IS FAITHFUL!