Your Spirit-Filled Key to Navigating Challenging Seasons With Grace by DR. SHARON MANCHA for Charisma News
With so much discomfort and suffering it is very easy to question why God allows difficulty in the lives of those that love Him. This is an on-going question of theology. If God loves us and cares, why do bad things happen to God’s people? The answer is a complex one, but I would like to attempt to answer it by considering God’s love for all. God loves every person and His entire creation, but He also desires that we love Him and love each other with an authentic love. He wants us to learn to trust Him and to understand that life is full of adventure and includes in it both joy and sorrow (Eccl. 3:4).
It is difficult to understand that tears and laughter are both significant to our growth, and they develop within in us compassion, mercy, patience and a more perfect love for God, ourselves and others. Growing our love into God’s stretches us to forgive those that trespass against us. Our most intense gratitude toward God comes because He forgave us. God’s love is the power that transforms our hearts to embrace the power of forgiveness. Without this act of grace, our world would be even more evil. God’s love within us balances the chaos of evil and causes grace to abound much more.
Without difficulty, we would not know the strength of God’s love to overcome hard times. God loves us so much that He allows challenging seasons to cross our path that we may stretch and learn to forgive, to show mercy and to perceive a love so strong that it embraces the repenting soul that has done the unforgivable. Could you image your spouse or child doing a heinous act and not being able to be forgiven? God’s love considers the whole life and not just an act or moment in time. He looks beyond our faults and sees the repentant heart of His child, responding with forgiveness, love and grace. This love allows difficult things to happen to us while teaching the unconditional love of God.
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In my lifetime, I have experienced much difficulty and trial and at varying seasons wondered why. After prayer, reading the Bible, contemplation and studying life, it became clear that it all works together for my learning and growth. Though we would rather not experience some things, the reality is we may not be able to control the actions of others, and sometimes, because of sin in the world, we are challenged by their behavior. The grace of it all is that God gives us the strength to forgive and overcome in every situation and if we seek it, we can see His mercy in all of it.
