2 Corinthians 4:17 “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all”.
When we hear the name Stradivarius our minds immediately turn to violins because of Antonio Stradivarius's reputation for building the finest violins known to the world. The Stradivarius violins are known worldwide for their excellent quality and unique sound. Mr. Stradivarius hand-built everyone of his instruments. He used spruce for the tops, willow for the internal parts, and maple for the instrument's neck and back. These violins went through a rigorous testing phase before releasing one to the world. Because of this process, one of these violins today can sell for several millions dollars.
As children of God like these violins, we are being
hand-built by God; we are molded and structured to make us into His image. Our
Heavenly Father cultivates us and kneads us with a mixture of adversity and
hardships. Then He puts us through demanding and challenging testing in the
studios of daily life. This procedure is not always something we especially
enjoy or even understand at times. We can live with peace knowing that our
lives will manifest the exquisiteness of God's holiness through the everlasting
acclamation to our Lord and Savior.
What we must ask ourselves are some tough questions.
Is God cultivating me at this present time? What am I doing to show my
gratitude to God? Do I spend my days and nights singing His praises and
thanking Him? Maybe I am grumbling and whining about where God has me right
now.
The mountain top is always a more desirable place to
be but always keep in mind that nothing grows on the mountain tops; it is down
in the valley where everything flourishes. The tribulations and valleys we walk
through will ultimately strengthen our faith, and we should be praising and
thanking God instead of complaining and grumbling. We choose how we handle and
respond to these valleys we must walk through from time to time. God's Holy
Word is brimming with reminders of God's great love, grace, and mercy. Having
God in our lives will assure us that He will walk with us through our deepest
darkest valleys (Psalm 23:4).
Sometimes we feel distressed and troubled over the circumstances
of our lives, but God wants us all to know that we are not alone. Furthermore, if we look into His perfect
Word, God will bring to mind that we will never have to face these trials and
valleys on our own (Psalm 119:143-144).
The choice we have is we can try to cope with these dark valleys
on our own and most likely sink into a cesspool or gutter of despair. On the
other hand, we can give it over to God and walk with Him. Then we can have a
life of joy and peace no matter what the circumstances we find ourselves in
Being vigilant in prayer and Bible study is the only way we will
ever be able to continue to assure ourselves that God is always there and will
never leave or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5; Deuteronomy 31:6).
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