June 7, 2023 8:00 pm
The memories flooded back when I rustled through some envelopes and glimpsed a sticker that said, “I’ve had an eye test.” In my mind I saw my four-year-old son proudly wearing the sticker after enduring stinging eyedrops. Because of weak eye muscles, he had to wear a patch for hours each day over his strong eye—thereby forcing the weaker eye to develop. He also needed surgery. He met these challenges one by one, looking to us as his parents for comfort and depending on God with childlike faith. Through these challenges he developed resilience.
People who endure trials and suffering are often changed by the experience. But the apostle Paul went further and said to “glory in our sufferings” because through them we develop perseverance. With perseverance comes character; and with character, hope (Romans 5:3–4). Paul certainly knew trials—not only shipwrecks but imprisonment for his faith. Yet he wrote to the believers in Rome that “hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit” (v. 5). He recognized that God’s Spirit keeps our hope in Jesus alive when we put our trust in Him.
Whatever hardships you face, know that God will pour out His grace and mercy on you. He loves you.
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Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. I'm Amy Boucher-Pye and I called our reading, Strengthened Through Trials. The memories flooded back when I rustled through some envelopes and glimpsed a sticker that said, I've had an eye test. In my mind I saw my four-year-old son proudly wearing the sticker after enduring stinging eye drops. Because of weak eye muscles, he had to wear a patch for hours each day over his strong eye, thereby forcing the weaker eye to develop. He also needed surgery. He met these challenges one by one, looking to us as his parents for comfort and depending on God with childlike faith. Through these challenges, he developed resilience. People who endure trials and suffering are often changed by the experience. But the Apostle Paul went further and said to glory in our sufferings, because through them we develop perseverance. With perseverance comes character, and with character, hope.
Paul certainly knew trials, not only shipwrecks, but imprisonment for his faith. Yet in Romans chapter 5 he wrote to the believers in Rome that hope does not put us to shame because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. The Apostle recognized that God's Spirit keeps our hope in Jesus alive when we put our trust in him. Whatever hardships you face, know that God will pour out his grace and mercy on you.
He loves you. Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from Romans chapter 5 verses 1 through 5. Therefore since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God, not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character, and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. Let's pray together. Ever-loving God, you promise that you will never leave us. Help us to hold onto your promises even when we're struggling. We thank you, Lord, and we pray in the name of Jesus. Amen. Today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries. Thank you for listening.
Whisper: medium.en / 2023-06-07 21:04:26 / 2023-06-07 21:05:52 / 1
