The Solution to All My Problems

Ever feel overwhelmed by life's troubles? Your own? Your friends? Strangers? I know I do. I can let the circumstances get the best of my emotions and feel hopeless. I always know what's best though. I know Who is best. I can choose the more narrow path. The path which changes my perspective completely. This is because Who I believe in, changes everything about me, my life, and my world.

Let's stop there for a minute. Who I believe in. Believe not in the sense of the typical response of, "oh yea, I believe in God, but..." No, my believe changes things. Does yours?
"Whoever believes in (adheres to, trusts in, and relies on) Me..." (John 11:25 AMP)
The 'believe' that Jesus is talking about is not merely saying I believe in God as a higher power, or even in Jesus as a historical figure who lived on earth. Believing in Him means adhering to Him, trusting in Him, relying on Him. Wow. This is enough to chew on... but I have to keep going with what brought me to writing tonight.

I feel bombarded right now with life's troubles, not just mine-- but of those I love. How much trouble can one handle? When I see the load my loved ones are carrying, sometimes I feel lost for words. From financial instability, to miscarriage, to marital separation, to abandonment by your baby's father, to homelessness, to insecurity, to sick children, to loss of a loved one, to pregnancy complications, to neglect from a father, and the list of troubles goes on. Comparing our troubles with another is never the answer, we all have only so much we can handle in different seasons of our lives. And I do hold onto the promise of Romans 5:3-5:
"But we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us."  (Romans 5:3-5) NIV
We all have troubles-- the daily kind and the seasonal overwhelming kind. As we just read though, we have had God's love poured into our hearts and have been given the Holy Spirit. I know I can't even begin to fathom all that truly means.

Life doesn't have formulas that give us the answer or the easy way out. And I obviously have a deep craving for this, because I've seemed to kind of make one.... but I think it works because it's based on the words of Jesus Himself.
troubles --> take heart + overcome
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) 
The moment of the onset of trouble... I try to remember this truth. I've realized that when I encounter troubles in life, I've stopped allowing them to take control. I try my hardest to not let them make me lose it! Because when I encounter trouble I remind myself that Jesus (my best friend, the light of the world, the prince of peace) told me that I would have trouble... (He warned me!) But he said "take heart for I have overcome the world." And that Overcomer... yep, He lives inside of me. Which means I have that same overcoming power in me. So somehow I have to figure out how to take that trouble and apply the overcoming power of God over it.  So maybe this is simpler:
trouble + overcoming power = peace
How can you apply that overcoming power to the troubles you are facing? How can you remember to take a deep breath and "take heart" the moment trouble knocks on your door?! Don't allow the trouble to have the victory... because He has already overcome the world. He already has the victory. Amen!
 


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