Date: Thursday, August 07, 2014
Today's Chapters: Isaiah 64-66
Message Title: Through Your Affliction

Affliction, no one wants to be in it, and if we are, we want an end to it quickly. There are several reasons why we become afflicted, sometimes it can be of our own doing, sometimes we get caught up in the middle of someone else's affliction, but quite often, it has nothing to do with us at all. Whether we like it or not, affliction is God's way of growing us and shaping us into a masterpiece. “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” - 2 Corinthians 4:17,18.

I will be the first to admit that I tire of the constant affliction that seems to never go away, as soon as I see an open door it gets slammed in my face. When we are afflicted, thoughts of “Why God?” and “I can't take this anymore!” come to mind quite often. You pray and seek answers from God, read His Word, hoping to find some kind of relief, only to cry yourself to sleep because you feel like He does not even hear you. Through Isaiah, God explains the reason why we face affliction. “For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him. Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved. But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities. But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.” - Isaiah 64:4-8.

Everything we go through is God molding us and shaping us into His own work of art. The truth is, the things we are seeking from God are nothing compared to what He really has for us, we just have to wait for it. We often cause much of the affliction ourselves because we are impatient and seek other ways to get the things we want. No, we are not always using sin to get the things we want, but God knows what we actually need, so, the things we want rarely are what we really need. “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.” - 1 Corinthians 2:9-11.

To understand God's ways, we need the Holy Spirit, and without the Holy Spirit directing us, we might as well be deaf and blind because we will not hear or see God. Through Isaiah, God chides with those who know Him, but continue to ignore Him. “I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not: I said, Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name. I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts; A people that provoketh me to anger continually to my face; that sacrificeth in gardens, and burneth incense upon altars of brick; Thus saith the LORD, As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it: so will I do for my servants' sakes, that I may not destroy them all. Therefore will I number you to the sword, and ye shall all bow down to the slaughter: because when I called, ye did not answer; when I spake, ye did not hear; but did evil before mine eyes, and did choose that wherein I delighted not.” - Isaiah 65:1-3,8,12.

There is not one person on earth that does not seek some form of help from their affliction, every once in a while someone unexpectedly finds Jesus through theirs. Sadly, many who know Jesus continue to suffer. Why? They seek God's help, but it's vain. We cannot expect God to remove the affliction if we refuse to remove the something from our lives that is causing it. “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” - James 1:12.

Sometimes the affliction we are in remains there because we are not listening to God. Through Isaiah, God reminds us that until we hear Him we will remain afflicted. “Therefore will I number you to the sword, and ye shall all bow down to the slaughter: because when I called, ye did not answer; when I spake, ye did not hear; but did evil before mine eyes, and did choose that wherein I delighted not. Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry: behold, my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty: behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed: Behold, my servants shall sing for joy of heart, but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart, and shall howl for vexation of spirit.” - Isaiah 65:12-14.

God's ways are not our ways, and until we get that in our head we will never be satisfied with any outcome that He has for us. God loves us and does not want to see us suffer, but we cause the suffering when we refuse to see that some things that He does not want us to have. It's not that He does not want us to be happy, it's that He does not want to see us hurt even more if He allowed it. Keep in mind, that if we continue to pursue what it is that God does not want us to have, and get it, the affliction we are in now will be nothing compared to what we will face. “If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given. For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he hath.” - Mark 4:23-25.

I had an ex-boyfriend that lives in another country, I rarely heard from him, but when I did he stirred up all sorts of things that got us thinking about reconciling. In my mind, I knew it would be the worst mistake of my life, but it never stopped me from thinking that we could be together. After a few months of his lies he would disappear once again, leaving me broken hearted and ashamed that I had broken God's heart again. This was affliction that I brought on myself because I wanted him in my life, and no matter how many times I cried to God, He was not going to remove it until I saw that he was not what I needed. “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” - James 4:8-10.

We could spend our days of affliction questioning God's ways, we could cry that He refuses to listen, or we could even walk away because it seems as though He never answers our prayers, but what good would that do? We would still be afflicted. Remember your life the way it was before Christ was in it? God loves us, and wants the best for us, He just wants us to listen to Him, and trust that His way, truly is the best way. “As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” - Romans 8:36-39.

Today's Prayer: God, You know that I have questioned why You allow or will not allow certain things in my life, and I thank You for allowing me to question You. My love for You hurts my heart and soul when I even think about my life without You, and while I still do not understand everything You put me through, I do understand that You know what is best for me. Lord, I'm sorry for not having patience with You, for pursuing things that were not in Your will for me, and for questioning Your ways. Give me Your power to understand, let me be content through my affliction, and help me to draw closer to You, and not further away. In Jesus' name. Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

Are You 100% Sure That You Are Going To Heaven? Visit: God's Price
Like Us On Facebook: I'm Following Jesus
©2014 I'm Following Jesus