Jesus trusted us.  He knew what we were capable of and He knew how much we could handle.  Then, He did something that none of us could have imagined.  Jesus gave us the biggest  . . . responsibility in all of history.

He asked us to “be His witnesses.”

That means that if we are Christ followers and want to obey His commands – which is the definition of disciples – we will accept this mandate and live the rest of our lives with this greatest of commissions as our focal point. 

The problem is – that it’s not an easy task.

The enemy hates us.  He wants to kill us, steal our destiny, and destroy any effectiveness in our life’s purpose of obeying and glorifying God. There is sin and sickness in this fallen world that is always crouching at our doorstep.  There are assaults coming at us from every direction it seems at times. 

But, don’t worry – God has given us the advantage!

First: 

Jesus warned us that it wasn’t going to be an easy road.  But we could still be joyful in spite of the difficulty.

These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”  John 16:33

Second:

Jesus reminds us through Peter that we shouldn’t be caught off guard by tough times but we should actually be glad about them because we can then identify with Himself and His sufferings (which by the way, were far worse than ours.)

Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. ¹³  Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.  I Peter 4:12-13

Third:

The Lord reminds us that facing difficulty (with His support) make us stronger.

. . . He said (to Paul:) “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” (Like Paul we can say:) So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. ¹⁰  That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.  2 Corinthians 12:9-10

Friends, difficulty really can make us stronger.  As I just tweeted yesterday:

“We will never know how strong our anchor is in calm seas.  Likewise, we’ll never know how strong we are until we’ve encountered adversity.”

I encourage you all to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might!  Stay steady.  Look forward.  Keep your eyes on Him – He will never let you down!

Love you guys,

Steve 🙂

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