Facing Adversity God's Way - A Devotion from Lillian Duncan

Facing Adversity God’s Way

Romans 8:28

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Life has its hills and valleys. Life can be tough whether we’re “good” Christians or not. When adversity comes and it most likely will, then we must decide to face adversity in a godly way—in a way that will honor God.

I know a little about adversity.

In 2012 I was diagnosed with bilateral brain tumors called acoustic neuromas. Without going into all the gory details, it’s been a difficult journey. Five years later, I’m partially deaf; must face the reality that I might become completely deaf; have severe balance issues that affects my mobility; chronic fatigue and numerous other issues. Unless God chooses to give me a miracle none of these things are going away and may even get worse.

Life can get really hard but Romans 8: 28 promises God is there and He will work it out for our good. That doesn’t mean we will all get the happy ending we are praying for. 

Remember God’s ways are not our ways. His good is not necessarily the same as what we view as good. But it does promise that God will work out our situation for our good.

I hate my brain tumors. It seems as if something “new” happens every month or so to make life a little more difficult, but I’m at a point now I can see how God has and is working things out for my good.

I now trust God in a way that I never did before.

I now believe God’s promises.

I now understand just how faithful God is in all things—even when life is difficult.

I know—I know—I know that God does not leave us alone in our battles! So what can we do to “overcome” the world? We can’t always change our circumstances—no matter how much we want to, but we can honor God by choosing to stay in faith.

We can choose faith over worry.

We can choose faith over giving up.

We can choose faith over anger.

When we choose faith, we choose to keep our eyes on Jesus rather than our circumstances. When we choose faith, we are choosing hope. When we choose faith we honor God.

Bio:

Lillian Duncan writes stories of faith mingled with murder & mayhem as well as devotions. To learn more about her and her books visit her at www.lillian-duncan.com