Your Troubles to Bless
I was reading the lyrics of an old hymn, How Firm a Foundation, when the phrase “your troubles to bless” jumped off the page. Have you ever asked God to bless your troubles? We usually ask Him to bless us by taking away our troubles. In fact, many of our prayers are desperate, wanting God to fix everything as soon as we ask Him too!
The truth is there are blessings in our troubles. We can be broken and blessed at the same time. The blessing isn’t just for when the troubles are over and we can look back and breathe a huge sigh of relief that by the grace of God we made it! It’s for when we are right in the middle of our troubles too. The water may be up to our chins, the fire incredibly hot, but He sustains us, and it is in the sustaining that we experience His blessings.
Listen to these verses. They are beautiful promises to us when we are in the thick of troubles.
“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am Your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will hold you up with My victorious right hand.” (Isaiah 41: 10)
“When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.” (Isaiah 43: 2)
“We went through the fire and flood, but You brought us to a place of great abundance.” (Psalm 66: 12b)
“I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.” (Isaiah 48: 10)
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.” (Proverbs 3: 5 – 6)
“I will be your God throughout your lifetime–until your hair is white with age. I made you, and I will care for you. I will carry you along and save you.” (Isaiah 46: 4)
The blessing is experiencing God’s peace, deep and undisturbed despite our troubles. It is experiencing His strength when we are too weary to take another step, trusting Him to be faithful and compassionate to us. It is learning that He is truly enough and that even in the middle of difficult seasons, His love is wrapped around us, drawing us close.
