Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though
our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by
day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us
a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at
the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the
things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are
eternal.
(II Corinthians 4:16-18)
The Greek word for affliction is Thlipsis which means
to press or to apply pressure. Anything that burdens the spirit,
tribulation, distress, anguish and suffering.
These things are a part of every day Christian life,
something that we have all experienced, are experiencing or will experience.
Its inevitable that the Christian will suffer many things as he is being
conformed to Christ's image. Since God is not confined by earthly time, He
calls it light and momentary, but I can tell you from experience that it can
seem like an eternity.
Precious gems, silver, gold and other valuable metals
are all created under extreme pressure. Some take hundreds of years, some
have to be heated and some have to be hammered, but all have to be put under
great stress in order to become beautiful in the eyes of the Beholder. God
in His infinite wisdom puts us in His furnace of affliction to create His
image in us.
Suffering under trial and the pressures of life,
sickness or any other affliction is to ultimately iron out the wrinkles of
the bride's dress. Great heat and pressure is applied to the garment and the
wrinkle or other imperfection is ironed out. Sounds simple but suffering can
be very devastating to the one enduring it. I don't know many in the body of
Christ that truly walk with Jesus that are not experiencing great
tribulation in their lives.
It grieves me to see so many with debilitating diseases
suffering, some with great pain and with no relief, only the Savior's grace
to comfort them. I spoke to a dear brother whose wife is battling cancer as
many others are. She is in pain and undergoing chemo, which is sometimes
worse than the disease. This precious couple have been on the mission field
for years faithfully serving the Lord and now have had to suffer both
physical and financial stress. It seems so unfair, but God has a purpose and
a plan for us all.
For to this you were called, because Christ
also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His
steps: "Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth"; who when
He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not
threaten, but committed Himself to God who
judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, that
we having died to sins, might live for righteousness, by whose stripes you
were healed.
(I Peter 2:21-24)
Committing yourself and your circumstance to God is not
as easy as it sounds, but ultimately it is the only way to get through
whatever trial you are suffering. I can tell you that through my experience
having been divorced, bankrupt, homeless, jobless, friendless, through death
and countless trials in the past 28 years, that in most cases I squealed
like a pig! Not real spiritual, but until God proved Himself faithful time
after time I finally learned to commit whatever I was going through to Him.
My brother has a saying: "Too soon old, too
late smart." and it is a very accurate statement when it comes
to walking and experiencing God. It takes time to learn to trust Him and
commit to Him our trials and tribulations. When we learn to rely on Him and
not what we think or our own understanding of things then He will take over
the situation and carry you through your circumstance.
The apostle Paul received great revelation from the
Holy Spirit and because of this he received a thorn (a cruel
messenger of Satan) in his flesh to keep him from exalting
himself. Three times he pleaded with God to make it leave but God told him
that His grace would carry him through and that strength is perfected in
weakness. It is believed that Paul had a disease in his eyes, but in spite
of this he performed great miracles of healing and deliverance all the while
being afflicted in his own body.
Imagine praying for the sick while you are experiencing
sickness in your own body. That kind of takes away any tendency of getting
prideful. God wants us to know that He's the healer and not us. Man can
posses a gift of healing but ultimately God is the One who heals. Today in
the Charismatic realm it is not spiritual to be sick and not get healed or
to be going through a trial and not be immediately delivered, but from
experience I can tell you it will not happen until God has accomplished what
He wishes to do in you.
"My
grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness."
Therefore most gladly
I will boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in
persecutions, in distresses, for when I am weak, then I am strong.
(II Corinthians 12:9,10)
Suffering and sickness does not bring God glory as many
of the old saints used to say. It's the way we
endure it in faith that brings
Him glory. God's purpose and plan for us is higher than anything we can
imagine, but sometimes we must endure great trials and suffer many things to
see it through. Our flesh does not like to endure affliction even as Jesus
Himself did not want to suffer on the cross for us, but He knew that the
outcome would ultimately give God glory.
Compared to eternity life is short and what we do on
this planet before we die is being stored in heaven for us. We have a
tendency to only look at our earthly situation and because we can't see into
glory, we sometimes forget the prize of eternal life. There is great reward
for us at the end of our journey and an eternity to enjoy it with the Lord
Jesus Christ. I don't really think we have a clue about what God has in
store for us when we reach the end of this journey and proceed into His
Glorious land.
For I consider that the sufferings of this
present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be
revealed in us.
(Romans 8:18)
Those things that we suffer in this life will
ultimately render for us in the next, an eternal weight of God's manifest
glory stored up in heaven's treasury. Jesus said, "Where your treasure is
there will be your heart." In other words whatever is of true eternal value
to you in this life will be turned to glory when we enter heaven's gate.
This world as we know it is passing away before our
very eyes and America is being destroyed, not by her enemies, but by her own
greed and selfish ambition fueled by lust. The prophetic warning that Jesus
gave His disciples has come to pass when He said, that peoples love for one
another would grow cold and lawlessness would increase.
The church of Jesus Christ would do well to heed the
warnings of the end of all things that is staring us in the face and begin
to repent of her sins and go after the prize of gathering souls that will
reap eternal benefits and the outcome, eternal life. Life is short and
eternity is forever, so choose the rest of your time on this earth wisely
and invest all you have in God's eternal weight of glory!
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a
living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an
inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away,
reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith
for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for
a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that
the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold, that
perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and
glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love.
Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy
inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith - the
salvation of your souls.
(I Peter 1:3-9)
Your servant in
Christ, Tim
MOMENTARY LIGHT
AFFLICTION
Dear Reader - are you at peace with God? If not, you
can be. Do you know what awaits you when you die? You can have
the assurance from God that heaven will be your home, if you would like
to be certain. Either Jesus Christ died for your sins, or He didn't (He
did!). Are you prepared to stand before God on the Judgment Day
and tell Him that you didn't need
the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the Cross to have your sins forgiven and
get in right-standing with God? We plead with you ... please don't make
such a tragic mistake.
To get to know God; to be at
peace with God; to have your sins forgiven; to make certain heaven will
be your home for eternity; to make certain that you are in right-standing with
God right now ... please
click here to help understand the
importance of being reconciled to God. What you do about being reconciled
to God will determine where you will spend eternity, precious one. Your
decision to be reconciled to God is the most important decision you'll ever make
in this life.
The staff and our
ministry supporters so greatly appreciate hearing how God is touching lives for
His glory through this outreach. If this ministry has blessed you in some
special way, would you please consider taking a brief moment and share your
blessing with us? Simply email us at:
ptoffice@precious-testimonies.com
We truly thank each of
you who allow us to publish your testimony, for those who faithfully pray (and
fast) for this outreach, for those of you who help support the ministry
financially, and for those of you who pass along these testimonies and other
ministry writings to others. The part the Holy
Spirit has you play is vital in helping win lost souls and being
engaged in discipleship, and we can never thank you enough for the labor
of love and support you provide on behalf of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Precious Testimonies
is supported financially by those God directs to sow into this ministry. We ask
each person reading this to please ask God on an on-going basis if He would have
you sow a financial gift to this
evangelistic outreach of His - trust that He will clearly communicate His will
to you in the matter - then simply be obedient. Please feel free to contact us
if you have any questions about the current financial needs of this outreach, or
any other questions you may have.
For convenience, you
can simply click on the secure
Pay Pal donate button below if you want to
donate by credit card. Otherwise, you can send your precious gift to:
Precious Testimonies, P.O. Box 516, Jenison, MI 49429.
Precious
Testimonies
is a non-denominational
501-C-3 evangelistic ministry, and financial love offerings to this ministry are
tax-deductible for those who qualify. A financial summary can be viewed by
clicking on the following link:
Financial Summary.
