I have joked around with my friends about my autobiography for probably twenty years. Twenty years ago, my autobiography would have been about a young man, out of college, living a worldly life… lots of hard work, lots of partying, not anywhere near valuable to our Father in Heaven.
I joke around about this too…. But if I were to write an autobiography today, it would be titled, “The Many, Many, Many … Many Times God Proved Me Undoubtably Wrong.”
And there is so much power in testimony:
Revelation 12:11 King James Version – 11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.
I was having a conversation with a friend, and I told her that my family doesn’t talk a lot about their lives, they kind of keep to themselves.
“Except me” I added. And she laughed pretty hard, as I was always ready to share my struggles and triumphs….
Well… the first major example of God proving me wrong …
Romans 5:3-5 English Standard Version – 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 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.
I remember, like it was yesterday, the first time I saw this Bible Verse. I was at the front end of a major life crisis. I was in Galena Illinois at a fancy AirBnB type mansion for a long weekend. This verse made me angry… I did not want to be going thru the trouble in my life. I hated the impact it was having on my family.
But…..
Romans 8:28 King James Version 28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Another verse that initially gave me fits…..
Really? Rejoice in our sufferings? This is all going to work out for GOOD?
Give me a break….
But I kept digging in. I kept up with the fellowship. I kept praying for patience and perseverance thru the trouble.
And God answered.
I have better opportunities in my life. The patience and perseverance I gained has impacted all parts of my life. Better father to my kids, more peace … more joy…. Awesome fellowship.
So taking this whole COVID situation with a different perspective…. I have Faith that God’s Will will prevail thru this. Even talking to my kids, we have had grown and had positive experiences. Working from home gave me more time to be a father and more flexibility… we even got a dog…
Comments are open here …. let me know your thoughts…
peace,
-mike
Discerning Whitewater 