Gifts of Tribulation

“And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.” –Romans 5:3-5

The last thing that goes through our mind when we hit a snag in the road is that God is trying to give us hope from this. But we have reason to welcome adversity in our lives because of the benefits we will reap if we give our troubles to God.

He wants all of His children to have what we need to succeed in life. But it’s like what I’ve heard an old preacher say sarcastically; “never pray for patience, because you can expect to have that patience tried.” Because patience, like everything else in life, is a learned virtue. One gains patience by repeatedly overcoming hardships. Each one makes you more prepared for the next.

When you can routinely remain patient through tough times, you gain a better understanding and wisdom to handle these problems. That’s all that experience is; it is the ability to not become overwhelmed and panicked in situations that you have been through. Just calm down, know that God is on your side and deal with it.

And through this, we can have hope that one day, all of these problems and issues will be no more. The Christian can always have hope, because there is only one way the story ends for us; we spend eternity in Heaven with our Lord and Savior. After all of the struggling this life has to offer, we will one day hear those words, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.”

Now look at all of the things God has gifted us, when this started out as tribulation in our lives. With all of these tools now at our disposal, we have everything we need to carry out God’s plan for our lives. We never need to be ashamed of who holds our soul. –By Cory Farr

Cory attended University of Mary Hardin-Baylor with a major in Mass Communications. He has a passion for the scripture and all things sports. While at church camp as a teenager, Cory made the decision to eventually attend a Biblical college in an effort to stay focused on his relationship with our Heavenly Father at a time when temptation can be at its strongest. He found his chance to follow through with that commitment when he was offered the chance to pitch for the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor’s baseball team. There he spent his college career attending Bible classes, writing a column for Climbing Tal’s Hill, and breaking a record or two as a pitcher for the Crusaders. Cory is a member of Lakeway Baptist Church in Humble, Texas, where he serves as an AWANA leader and usher, and where he ministers to the community through a sports program that combines basketball and Bible study.- Bio by Cristin Baker

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

SOMETHING WORTH THE RISK

“Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment: It seemed good unto us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men unto you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, Men that have hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”- Acts 15:24–26

On November 19, 1863, almost by accident, President Abraham Lincoln gave what is probably the most famous speech in American history. He was not the main speaker when he gave what is remembered as the Gettysburg Address. But in his few words, Lincoln managed to capture both the purpose of the war and the American spirit. Recognizing the courage and spirit of those who had fought at Gettysburg, Lincoln said, “But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate—we cannot consecrate—we cannot hallow—this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract.”

The debt that we owe to those who have risked and given their lives for home and country is huge, and those sacrifices are fully worthy of honor and remembrance. Those who are willing to take on a great and dangerous task do so because they have found a cause that is worthy of sacrifice. It is not by accident that the Bible often uses the metaphor of warfare for the Christian life. Just as soldiers defend our country for a great cause, Christians are called to fight and sacrifice for the truth. “Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 1:3).(Daily in the Word)

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

BE PREPARED
“Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When her branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is near:”– Mark 13:28

The parable of the fig-tree, teaches that we should not shut our eyes to the foreshadowings of future things. We are taught not to be anxious about tomorrow. But there is also a duty of looking ahead–as well as not looking ahead. The good sailor watches the skies, and he would be criminally foolish–were he to pay no heed to the foretokens of storm. The prudent farmer watches the forerunners of winter, and gathers in his fruits, houses his cattle, puts wood and coal in his bins, when he can do so easily–and is ready before the snows and the bitter cold come. So in all our life we should watch the “signs of the times,” and shape our course accordingly.

Young people, as they feel the impulses of life in their souls, and hear the calls of God sounding in their ears, should be reminded of the duties and responsibilities of life, toward which they are moving, and should diligently prepare themselves for filling well their place. Each period of life brings its own special work; and there are always forecasts which, if heeded, will enable us to prepare ourselves for what God is preparing for us. If we are faithful, one day will prepare us for the next, and we shall never be found by any event, however sudden, unprepared to meet it.- J. R. Miller

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

SAVED BY GRACE

“When we were dead in sins, [God] hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved)”– Eph. 2:5

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”_- Eph. 2:8-9

If you are saved, how were your saved? Why were your saved? Was it because you were more spiritually sensitive, morally disciplined, or personally worthy than your unsaved neighbor?

Paul reminds us here that it was God who gave life to (quickened) us, when we were still spiritually dead in our sins. It was not we who loved God, but God who first loved us. It was not we who reached out for God, but God who reached out for us. It was not we who took hold of God, but God who took hold of us.

But why did He do it? What was His motivation for saving us when we were still enemies of Him and of His Son? Paul also gives us that answer: by grace you are saved.

Not by works, not by wisdom, not by worth — by grace you are saved. The very use of the word “grace” tells us that the motivation for salvation was not in us, but in God Himself. Grace is “unmerited favor” (or, in our case, demerited favor).

Not only did we not deserve salvation, we did deserve hell because of our sins. But God dealt graciously with us, reached out to us, gave life to our dead souls, and saved us from the powerful prison of sin.

The question, then, for us is not “What can I do to deserve salvation?” but rather “What response does this free and gracious salvation deserve?”–Baptist Bible Hour
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346