Guest Article: Victory in Difficult Circumstances

---

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 13, 2014

VICTORY IN DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES

Jackie Pullinger, a long-time missionary to China, spoke about sharing the Gospel with a woman who had been a prostitute for more than forty years.  She had been rejected, abused, and mistreated in nearly every way imaginable.  If anyone would seem to have valid reasons why the hope and victory of the Gospel couldn’t truly be experienced, it would be a woman like this.  Yet it wasn’t coddling, human sympathy, or personalized psychology principles that delivered this woman from despair and changed her from the inside out.  Rather it was the transforming power of Jesus Christ.  She became a new creature in Christ, and, as Jackie described it, “she had all her life again.”

Throughout Christian history, the Gospel has spread like wildfire whenever the most destitute and notorious people have been radically changed by its power.  In all the great revivals, people were drawn to the Gospel when they saw drunkards forsake their alcohol and prostitutes begin to live in purity. If the Gospel can offer such freedom and triumph for people with these backgrounds, can it not do the same for us?

Modern Christian ministry often sets us up to believe that we have “special circumstances” because of specific things we have been through, and therefore the Gospel can’t truly be applied to our lives in all its fullness and power.  We assume that if we’ve been through extreme difficulty or disappointment, we are entitled to a “special version” of Truth—perhaps seasoned with a few sympathetic words such as, “Don’t worry, God knows your situation is unique—you can’t be expected to apply Biblical Truth to your life the way others do!”

When we play the “special circumstances” card, we are merely creating a makeshift excuse to not take Jesus Christ at His Word.  There is no situation that the power of the Gospel cannot permeate and transform, and there is no wound that His cleansing blood cannot heal.  In fact, the more extreme the circumstances, the more opportunity for His supernatural grace to be demonstrated in all its life-changing power.

For me personally, it has not been the times when things have been easy that I have felt the most impact of God’s Truth in my life, but when things have been the most difficult.  In our ministry and books, Eric and I frequently emphasize the joy, peace, victory, and triumph of the true Christian life.  Consequently, some assume that our lives have been relatively easy and that is why we can speak about these truths with such confidence.  “They haven’t been through anything really challenging,” people think. “That’s why they can talk about lasting joy.” Or, “They haven’t been abused like I have, so that’s why they can preach about forgiveness and victory over sin.”

But in reality, Eric and I have been through tremendous personal trials and struggles. Anyone who has been in front-lines Christian ministry for twenty years, as we have, knows that it’s like living on a battlefield.  We have taken many bullets along the way—both from the enemy’s spiritual attacks and from various people who have reviled and rejected us.  We have experienced intense personal grief, such as losing our second child to a miscarriage, and we have been stabbed in the back by friends we deeply trusted.  We have faced extreme financial crisis through the dishonesty and corruption of others.  We have been threatened, cursed, and called terrible names publicly.  Most of the details of these experiences can’t be shared without dishonoring certain people, so we don’t often write or speak about them.

My point is this: it is not because we haven’t been through trials that we can speak so confidently about the transforming power of the Gospel, but because we have faced so many.  We have personally experienced the victory that comes when we cling to the Cross and allow His divine power to give us strength far beyond any strength we could ever find within ourselves.  That doesn’t mean that every day is filled with sunshine and roses.  There are times when we must wrestle through the tears, the hurt, the confusion, and the fear until we finally “break through” to a clear, Truth-filled perspective.  But when we wrestle for it, it always comes.

As you are contemplating the victorious, triumphant Christian life that He has called you to, beware of an attitude that says, “But my situation is different.  I can’t experience that kind of joy and freedom because…”

Mrs. Charles B. Cowman wrote, “Faith has nothing to do with circumstances. It deals entirely with the Word of God.”

Even if you don’t sense an immediate victory in the midst of your difficult circumstances, that doesn’t mean God doesn’t intend to give it to you.  Continue to pursue His promises until they have become reality in your daily life.  And soon you will be able to confidently declare along with Paul, “Thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ” (2 Cor. 2:14a, emphasis added).

Written by Leslie Ludy (from www.setapartgirl.com)

Pain: Friend or Foe?

How many times have you ever encountered a difficulty?  Probably a trick question for most of us. We've all encountered hardship on some level... some to an excruciating degree. During these times, it's easy to question God. Is He involved?  Is He truly good?  Why would He bring something like this against us?

Difficulty in the Bible is probably best epitomized in the book of Job. Throughout the book, Job encounters insurmountable hardships.... he lost all of his children, all of his livelihood, and all of his health. He had nothing in which to rejoice. But it's important to ask a deeper question when examining his story: what was the source of his hardships?  Who was bringing all of this against him?  A quick read through the first few chapters reveals very clearly that none of it was from God. Yes, God allowed it to work a greater purpose. But it was not by His hand that Job was oppressed. It was by the hand of the Enemy.

How often, during times of difficulty, do we simply accept feelings of hopelessness and despair as trials of faith from God, instead of fighting them?  When should we accept God's training, and when should we take up a sword and fight against the Enemy's agenda in our lives?

I think I've shared this before, but last fall, I went through a season involving phases of fairly intense guilt over past regrets. For awhile, I thought it was God's hand showing me where I had been wrong. But during this time, God led me to a chapter in Leslie Ludy's Set-Apart Femininity that shed a new light on the situation. By examining the nature of God and the nature of the Enemy throughout the Bible, we gain a deeper perspective on what is from God, and what is an attack against His work. In my case, I could tell quickly that the phases and depression and guilt were not from God. In 2 Corinthians, Paul talks about "Godly sorrow", and how God uses a form of regret over past sins in our lives. But his goal is not to condemn; it's to heal, and protect us from repeating the same mistake again. The Enemy's goal is to destroy us in guilt, and spread the lie that God's forgiveness is not enough. Romans 8:1 makes it clear that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ; the attacks were not coming from God.

Set-Apart Femininity gave some further insight on a few similar issues. Take a look:

~    ~    ~    ~    ~    ~    ~    ~    ~

Father of Lights vs. Father of Lies

      "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."

-James 1:17

God has created us to know Him more intimately, and glorify Him. He does not change, and He is without guile; we can take Him at His word. He will not lead us into paths of doubt. He will not lead us to condemnation. According to 1 Peter 2:9, God has called us into marvelous light. Light is clear, bright, joyful and glorious; not confusing, blurry and dark. Satan is the father of lies and darkness; his aim in our lives is to draw us away from God, and he has an agenda by which to do  it. 

Anything of confusion, fear or darkness, or that causes us to lose hope and confidence in God, 

is not from God. 

Discipline vs. Abuse

Hebrews 12:5-7 describes the qualities of discipline from God; He gently trains His children to draw them back to His own heart, as a father. When children are being disciplined, they don't see it as love..... but it is. God is our loving father and bridegroom; the enemy is a prince of abuse, and harshness. 

"The loving Bridegroom is a patient listener, affectionate, an advocate and rescuer, willing to give up His life to save, and quick to respond to the need of His bride. Words of love and kindness are constantly on His tongue, and prayers are continually ebbing forth for the benefit of His beloved." 

-Leslie Ludy

He will NOT abuse His beloved in His correction.

Anything of an abusive nature is not from God. 

Shepherd vs. Roaring Lion

Psalm 23 famously praises God for being our good shepherd, who laid down everything to protect His sheep. 

"As our shepherd He is deeply interested and concerned in even the smallest matter, watchful, and constantly alert to the needs of His own. He never tires. He never sleeps. He is always looking upon His lambs with an affectionate gaze, ready to fight and defeat any fiend who would dare attack those under His care."

-Leslie Ludy

Compare this to the lion attacking the sheep. He comes to destroy, and to kill. He brings death and danger in his path. He controls the sheep's attention and respect, by fear instead of love. He threatens, and causes anxiety. Would anyone be able to say that the loving shepherd has these same characteristics?  

Anything of death, destruction, defeat and anxiety are not from God.

~    ~    ~    ~    ~    ~    ~    ~    ~

Think about all of that..... how many events in our life to we accept because we think they are from God, when they may truly be attacks from the enemy?  God's nature is one of victory, and He has given us a supernatural arsenal to fight the forces of hell, not simply to give way to their agenda. Look at some of these promises:

He will supernaturally protect us from harm.

9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
    and you make the Most High your dwelling,
10 no harm will overtake you,
    no disaster will come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you
    to guard you in all your ways;
12 they will lift you up in their hands,
    so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

-Psalm 91:9-12

He will not withhold any good thing from us.

11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
    the Lord bestows favor and honor;
no good thing does he withhold
    from those whose walk is blameless.

12 Lord Almighty,
    blessed is the one who trusts in you.

-Psalm 84:11-12

He will give us supernatural strength in Him.

29 He gives strength to the weary
    and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
    and young men stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in the Lord
    will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not grow weary,
    they will walk and not be faint.

-Isaiah 40:29-31

He will give us power over the enemy.

29 

Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

-James 4:7

He will stand against all who stand against us.

29 

No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment, you shall condemn.

-Isaiah 54:17

God is for us. Anything He does in your life will be for good. He seeks to restore your soul, not to crush it. And He has given you everything you need to crush the enemy's lies in your life. 

And if our God is for us,

Then what could stand against?

Raindrops on Roses: The Hope for Tomorrow

Over 1,500 Christians in Iraq have been murdered within the last several weeks. 

1.2 million innocent lives were taken by abortion in the last year.

163 million children live alone and unloved as orphans. 

27 million people are trapped as human slaves in the trafficking system. 

150,000 people died and went to hell today. 

The power and atrocities of ISIS hold the attention of news cameras world-wide. Behind the scenes, children are subjected to injustice beyond imagination.... some abandoned and left to die, some abused and sold for the pleasure of others, others murdered before they've even had a chance to breathe. And in the midst of it all is a church that doesn't feel their pain, can't make themselves care, and are blinded to the burdens of their King. Members of the church itself died and went to hell today, because they never believed. 

Despair. Depression. Hopelessness. 

Betsie Ten Boom lived the last and most difficult days of her life in a Nazi prison camp. She was physically, mentally, and emotionally tortured by guards and health issues. She witnessed the Holocaust first-hand, and became one of its victims. She lived inside the hopelessness..... but it could not touch her. When she looked at the cruel, empty walls of the prison, she saw something beautiful. God gave her visions of goodness, and love, and rejoicing. She saw a place where the people who had been hurt by the cruelty of the camps would be healed, and know Christ; not somewhere far away, but in that very prison camp, with those enslaving walls painted green. And not just the victims; she saw a place where even the perpetrators of the Holocaust could be led to redemption. 

She saw beauty, where there was none. She saw Christ, when no one else could. She was, as Zechariah 9:12 calls it, a "prisoner of hope".

Isn't it interesting how we tend to approach the world?  We blame God for the bad things, and take the good things He has given us for granted. We act as though we deserve blessings, and are angry if we don't receive them. What if you were to change your mindset?

Every day is undeserved. It's a kiss from heaven; a sweet drop of clear, flawless purity, trickling down the soft folds of a rose as its surface meets the first rays of the morning's smile.

Every moment is a treasure.... a precious love letter, and a chance to cherish the beauty of a Supernatural presence enveloping the world with a depth beyond fathom.

Every breath is priceless. It's a new expression of the life of God breathed into the lungs of His creation; a reminder that this second is new and marks the beginning of the rest of your life. 

I am a prisoner of HOPE.

What if, instead of noticing the bad, we were able to truly rejoice in the good?  What if we could see past the difficult moments, to hear God's promises of joy on the other side?  What if we treasured those raindrops instead of destroying them?  What if every breath was priceless to us?  What if we looked past the hopelessness of the world, to the God of all power and goodness, who wept with the world when death took a life he had created, but defeated death and raised the broken to life just verses later?

Hope does not mean that we are happy because of suffering. It's not simply finding the silver lining in the rain cloud. It's more than just being the optimist, telling everyone around you to rejoice, or trying to put on a false outlook and pretending that there is good when you see none. Hope is nearness to the heart of God Himself... resting in His presence, and letting your eyes see the beauty that He sees in the ordinary. Hope is not just a feeling of "happiness"... it feels God's heart for the oppressed, and brings with it His tears for the brokenness of the world. And yet it is the promise that the Enemy will not have the final say.

Lamentations 3 is one of the most beautiful Hope chapters I have ever read. It is not written in a tone of happiness; you feel the fullness of the suffering of God's people when you read it. At times, Jeremiah, the author, doesn't even understand why it is happening, and feels abandoned by God. "Yet I call this to mind, and therefore I have hope."

"He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more." (Revelation 21:4)

"I know the plans I have for you.... to prosper you, not to harm you. (Jeremiah 29:11)

"I will heal my people." (Jeremiah 33:6)

"My God has promised, and He cannot lie."

        I am a prisoner        of Hope.

"Beauty has Smiled"

Have you ever done an internet search on the word "beauty"?  Type that simple word into almost any search bar, and you'll come up with similar results every time..... stylish hair-do's, faces hidden by heavy make-up, uncovered shoulders, and perfect nails. Beauty even has its own official website, teaching viewers how to do the perfect Beach Bombshells, when to use what shades of lipstick, and where to find the perfect skin treatments.

Is that really all beauty has been reduced to in this day and age?  Aerosol cans, colored minerals, and masks to cover up our true identity?

" Beauty has smiled, but not to welcome us; her face has turned in our direction, but not to see us. 

We have not been accepted, welcomed, or taken into the dance. We may go when we please, we may stay if we can: 'Nobody marks us.' "

-C.S. Lewis The Weight of Glory

Our culture has diminished beauty to an unimaginable level. It's so easy to get wrapped up in the things that it has to offer, and miss the true picture!  Many of us, if not all of us, long to be seen as beautiful. But if we're looking for the beauty the world has to offer, we can never be fulfilled.

Most of you probably already have an idea of where you think this is going...... the age-old Veggie Tales message, that you don't have to be like everyone else to be beautiful!  After all, "God made you special, and He loves you very much!"

But what if I told you there was something deeper?  Something even better He had in store for us?

God is the creator of beauty. He formed you uniquely and individually. You are the perfect handiwork of a God who does not, and by nature, cannot make mistakes. He knew you before He created the universe. He already had the perfect design in mind, and His heart rejoiced when He was able to breathe His breath of life into that rapturous creation He called you. And, yes, He loves you.

But I would challenge you to move past the modern church-message of "finding beauty and worth within" and "following your heart", and ask a simple question: Why?  Why would He love us?  After all, we had nothing, that He should desire us.

Unveiled in that question is perhaps one of the most incredible truths of all time: we are beautiful, because we are the image of the God of beauty.

The constant battle for security comes when we try to find something in ourselves. We look at those around us, and see something we don't have. We start to wonder if we're worth it. We look inside ourselves, desperately hoping to find something beautiful. And so often, we fail to see what we want. When I look at our culture, I see a people trapped, looking inside themselves for security and worth. They see figures like Kate Middleton, and long to look the same..... ignoring the fact that Kate is only 91 pounds, can't maintain a healthy weight, and has a medical condition that is growing dangerous with her efforts to perfect her body. Have any of us ever given a thought as to how Kate might feel?  Does she see herself as completely worthwhile, or beautiful?  If she does, why does she still battle disorders?  Why do we think we would be any more secure, if we were in her position?  We are trapped in the endless cycle of selfish ambition and vain conceit, which can only destroy. We look to the world, and find it empty.

And all the while, God stands in front of us, waiting. He has never left; He is the source of beauty. True beauty is found in Him, not in ourselves.

If you've ever seen a young woman completely dedicated to Christ, you know what I mean. Several weeks ago, a couple of us girls in Kansas City had the privilege of meeting a young adult named Stephanie. Despite the fact that she was a home school alumni, affiliated with the same major group as we were, I had never seen or heard of Stephanie, until we received a church email update, inviting us to a church where they would be streaming Leslie Ludy's 2014 Set-Apart Girl Conference. When we arrived at the small location, we were greeted by a sweet, friendly smile. As she gave us a package of notes and chocolate, you could sense the radiance surrounding her, and could immediately tell that Stephanie was rooted in Christ. Throughout the conference, I was amazed and blessed by her sweet demeanor and the love of Jesus that you could sense flowing out of her. She wasn't wrapped up in the world's beauty; she was adorned with a supernatural loveliness that was more beautiful than any secular model I have ever seen.

That's where the truly incredible part lies. Worldly beauty is only outward.... it's only something you can perceive with your physical senses. But real beauty goes beyond that. It stems from a supernatural communion with Christ himself, that is not only externally visible, but that brings life and fullness, and joy to the heart of the one who partakes in it. To quote C.S. Lewis:

"We do not want merely to see beauty, though, God knows, even that is bounty enough. We want something else which can hardly be put into words - to be united with the beauty we see, to pass into it, to receive it into ourselves... to become part of it. 

.....We discern the freshness and purity of morning, but they do not make us fresh and pure. We cannot mingle with the splendours we see. But all the leaves of the New Testament are rustling with the rumor that it will not always be so. Some day, God willing, we shall get IN."

Someday, we will be fully united with beauty in its purest form, in glory. But until then, God has miraculously scattered glimpses and promises of the coming glory in our every day lives. And beauty is one of the greatest.

Are you ready to live beyond?

Hall of Fame

You can go the distance,
You can run the mile,
You can walk straight through hell with a smile.

You can be the hero,
You can get the gold,
Breaking all the records they thought never could be broke.

Do it for your people,
Do it for your pride,
How you ever gonna know if you never even try?

Do it for your country,
Do it for your name,
Cause there's gonna be a day, when you're...

Standing in the hall of fame,
And the world's gonna know your name.

Alright, I'll be honest; "Hall of Fame", by the Script is one of my favorites. :)  It does have some pretty incredible lyrics, if you think about it. Walking through difficulty rejoicing, being a hero, breaking impossible barriers..... sounds a lot like heroic Christianity, doesn't it?  And later on, the lyrics call us to: "Be believers, be leaders... be champions, be truth-seekers."  So what's missing?

This weekend, the famous football star, Michael Strahan, was inducted to the NFL Hall of Fame. Now, a life-sized bust of his head will be forever commemorated as a cultural icon of fame and prosperity. The world knows his name.

Believe it or not, Christianity has its own Hall of Fame. Actually, it has quite a few. Most people refer to Hebrews 11 as the "Hall of Faith" chapter, and, reading through it, it's easy to see why!  1 Chronicles 11 and 2 Samuel 23 contain lists of David's mightiest warriors. The book of Acts is filled with the heroic testimonies of the greats. The Halls of Fame display Christian heroism at its finest.

Yet there is one hero whose life and brave martyrdom does not appear in a Hall of Fame. His brother, Peter, appears continuously throughout Christian history as a hero made ready for the task at hand. He was given a new name by Christ, and Jesus called him uniquely into Gethsemene to pray with him, and up on the mount of transfiguration. For Catholics, Peter is the first Pope himself. This is no ordinary apostle!

But yesterday, I heard a completely new perspective on the story Peter. In a conversation with the sweet Bailey Brown, she pointed out to me that Andrew was actually the one that led Peter to Jesus in the first place.

And yet it was Peter, not Andrew, that was called the rock, taken into private confidences with Jesus, and deemed the ecclesial authority. It was Peter, not Andrew, whose name immediately comes to mind when many of us hear stores of Biblical heroism, martyrdom, healing, and the book of Acts.

But Andrew was willing to be the lesser vessel. He was willing to play the background. He was willing to serve in the small things, preparing him for his greatest moment, that shakes me to the core every time I hear it.

Toward the end of his life, Andrew was taken by the governor of a Judean region and told that if he would not stop preaching the cross, he would be crucified on one as well. Andrew's response, to this man who had the power on earth to do exactly as he threatened, was firm: "I would not have preached the glory of the cross of Christ if I was not willing to die upon it."  Infuriated, the governor took Andrew and tied him to a cross in the shape of an X. He hung there for three entire days, every bone of his body out of joint and torturously painful....... and all the while, he preached the glory of the cross to everyone who passed him, until God took him home. And you can bet your bottom dollar that, just like Stephen, Andrew was greeted with a standing ovation from his Lord and Savior when he walked through Heaven's gates.

This man was a hero. And yet he did everything in full humility. He did it while playing the background the entire time.

The need for modern-day "Andrews" is massive. Many Christians who have been stirred with the spirit of victory would willingly stand in Peter's position; he was martyred, too, but he was SOMEONE. He had authority, and fame. He was one of the closest disciples to Christ himself..... arguably the closest. But few of us are willing to take up a sword in the prayer closet, unacknowledged, where no one ever knows about it, as we pour ourselves out to win a victory before the only audience that matters. Bailey shared this story with me yesterday, and I thought it was incredible:

"You may or may not know of a man by the name of Richard Baxter. He was an English Puritan church leader, poet, hymn-writer and theologian. He also was an author and wrote many books. One of his more famous ones is called "A call to the unconverted". Now, when that book was published, a man by the name of Philip Doddridge read that book and became saved. Doddridge then wrote a book called the "Rise and progress of religion in the soul". When William Wilberforce read that book, HE became saved. William then wrote the book,"A Practical View of Christianity", which, I believe was the book that led a man by the name of 

Legh Richmond to get saved and write a book called "The Dairyman's Daughter"--a 52-page booklet that thousands, and maybe millions of people have read today. It's a true story about a woman who had a great spiritual understanding of the things of God. Wow! One man, huh? But then we ask the question, how did Richard Baxter get saved? Well, it was 1 woman who left a tract on his door. No one knows her name. No one knew who she was. She disappeared. But, really, who was she? 

She was an Andrew. Someone who didn't know what kind of an influence she would have. But she was willing to leave a tract on a man's door, and retreat back into the shadows; no one knowing her identity."

One tract. One woman whose name we don't even know. One Andrew...... sparked ALL of that.

The Script's "Hall of Fame" contains some powerful elements, but look at the motivation..... "Do it for your people, do it for your pride... do it for your country, do it for your name."  In other words?  Do it for YOU. So you will have a stance in the hall of fame. So the world will know your name.

But are you willing to be the one whose name the world will never know?  If they know HIS name, isn't that all that matters?

Are you willing to be an Andrew?  Or do you require the Hall of Fame?

It's evident You want to show,

So let me back down.

You take the leading role,

And I'll play the background.

-"Background", by Lecrae