Most of us have faced challenges and obstacles that often seem insurmountable.

The  hardship or challenge that seemed so overwhelming at the time could easily make one wonder why bother trying. It seems as if it was not worth fighting to overcome. The stress we can face seems to weigh heavily like a ten ton weight trying to crush and cripple us.

I have good news for you if you are going through some things like that. You are not alone (see 1 Corinthians 10:13) and God is working on something that will take you to the other side. 

Many believers today are facing their toughest trials ever. It might seem as if they are never going to end. They may also seem to be getting worse each waking moment. Sometimes however, the night is darkest just before dawn.

If this sounds familiar, join the club! You may have wanted to quit. All of Jesus’ disciples wanted to quit and some did! When Jesus said some heavy words that were hard to digest, many of His followers walked away. He had offended them. Peter wanted to quit, but dicided to stay, because he knew there was nowhere else to go. You can read this in John 6:60-71.

A glib comment could be “Don’t quit”, but when you are hanging on in the white knuckle brigade and things seem to be going from bad to worse, that is not always what we want to hear. I could go several ways with this message. I could touch on current world events, the global economy and terrorism, but you know what is going on. I could say they are a “sign of the times”, but I want to go another way.

This is a time when God’s divine favor is breaking coming forth.

It is breaking forth like the way the rays of the sun break through the darkness in inclement weather. The skies are dull and overcast, clouds are heavy and dark and it has been raining non stop in what seems to be an eternity, when suddenly, a break appears in the clouds and a beam of sunlight appears as the clouds start to dispel.

This is how the favor of God manifests. Light starts shining through the darkness engulfing us.

Let us take a look at David as our jumping off point when the darkness was engulfing him. When he composed Psalm 34, he was in real trouble. He pretended to be insane in the presence of Abimelech, who drove him away and you have to be in real trouble to pretend insanity! Even in such a plight, he said-

I will praise the LORD at all times; His praise will always be on my lips.
I will boast in the LORD; the humble will hear and be glad.
Proclaim Yahweh’s greatness with me; let us exalt His name together. Psalm 34:1-3.

Even when things seem impossible, it is possible to turn your mourning into dancing when you deliberately make a conscious decision to bless God like that. We can say what David said.

It’s not always easy, but it really does work!

The journey commences when you start seeking the Lord.

I sought the LORD, and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Psalm 34:4
 

The Lord answered him!  But that’s just the beginning. He delivered David from the things he feared! What you fear most will come upon you if you don’t deal with it. Seek the Lord about it.

That was before Calvary. If God did those things for him then, how much better off we are now because of Jesus.

I could break Psalm 34 down more, but here are a few samples.

We are the righteous. We have the assurance from God’s word that He will deliver us.

Psalm 91 reveals that those who dwell in God’s presence, beneath the shelter, protection and provision of His wings, will come out the other side smelling as sweet as roses.

God never said we would not have problems. He Said that we could see people fall like flies around us—but we won’t be touched!

The storm clouds will go and the sun will shine again.

Take a close look at all this wonderful psalm. It is really great and full of promise.

Most of us have faced challenges and obstacles that often seem insurmountable.

The  hardship or challenge that seemed so overwhelming at the time could easily make one wonder why bother trying. It seems as if it was not worth fighting to overcome. The stress we can face seems to weigh heavily like a ten ton weight trying to crush and cripple us.

I have good news for you if you are going through some things like that. You are not alone (see 1 Corinthians 10:13) and God is working on something that will take you to the other side. 

Many believers today are facing their toughest trials ever. It might seem as if they are never going to end. They may also seem to be getting worse each waking moment. Sometimes however, the night is darkest just before dawn.

If this sounds familiar, join the club! You may have wanted to quit. All of Jesus’ disciples wanted to quit and some did! When Jesus said some heavy words that were hard to digest, many of His followers walked away. He had offended them. Peter wanted to quit, but dicided to stay, because he knew there was nowhere else to go. You can read this in John 6:60-71.

A glib comment could be “Don’t quit”, but when you are hanging on in the white knuckle brigade and things seem to be going from bad to worse, that is not always what we want to hear. I could go several ways with this message. I could touch on current world events, the global economy and terrorism, but you know what is going on. I could say they are a “sign of the times”, but I want to go another way.

This is a time when God’s divine favor is breaking coming forth.

It is breaking forth like the way the rays of the sun break through the darkness in inclement weather. The skies are dull and overcast, clouds are heavy and dark and it has been raining non stop in what seems to be an eternity, when suddenly, a break appears in the clouds and a beam of sunlight appears as the clouds start to dispel.

This is how the favor of God manifests. Light starts shining through the darkness engulfing us.

Let us take a look at David as our jumping off point when the darkness was engulfing him. When he composed Psalm 34, he was in real trouble. He pretended to be insane in the presence of Abimelech, who drove him away and you have to be in real trouble to pretend insanity! Even in such a plight, he said-

I will praise the LORD at all times; His praise will always be on my lips.
I will boast in the LORD; the humble will hear and be glad.
Proclaim Yahweh’s greatness with me; let us exalt His name together. Psalm 34:1-3.

Even when things seem impossible, it is possible to turn your mourning into dancing when you deliberately make a conscious decision to bless God like that. We can say what David said.

It’s not always easy, but it really does work!

The journey commences when you start seeking the Lord.

I sought the LORD, and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Psalm 34:4
 

The Lord answered him!  But that’s just the beginning. He delivered David from the things he feared! What you fear most will come upon you if you don’t deal with it. Seek the Lord about it.

That was before Calvary. If God did those things for him then, how much better off we are now because of Jesus.

I could break Psalm 34 down more, but here are a few samples.

We are the righteous. We have the assurance from God’s word that He will deliver us.

Psalm 91 reveals that those who dwell in God’s presence, beneath the shelter, protection and provision of His wings, will come out the other side smelling as sweet as roses.

God never said we would not have problems. He Said that we could see people fall like flies around us—but we won’t be touched!

The storm clouds will go and the sun will shine again.

Take a close look at all this wonderful psalm. It is really great and full of promise.

We are the righteous. We have the assurance from God’s word that He will deliver us.

Psalm 91 reveals that those who dwell in God’s presence, beneath the shelter, protection and provision of His wings, will come out the other side smelling as sweet as roses.

God never said we would not have problems. He Said that we could see people fall like flies around us—but we won’t be touched!

The storm clouds will go and the sun will shine again.

Take a close look at all this wonderful psalm. It is really great and full of promise.