Today's Passage - 1 Thess 3:1-3

1 Thessalonians 3:1-3   So when we could stand it no longer we thought it best to be left by ourselves in Athens. We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God's fellow worker in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them.   Here Paul encourages us to persevere in the midst of trials. There are many aspects to trials. Firstly, trials come in all forms. Indeed, there are trials in the circumstances we face, there are attacks from the enemy, and there are hurts in relationships and all kinds of trials. But praise the Lord, do you know His blessings come in all forms too?   Not only does God want to give us the gift of salvation, but He also gives us the blessing of His guidance. The Bible says: He is our Shepherd and will guide us through our lives. God also has the blessing of provision. He is Jehovah Jireh and will provide for all that we need. We have blessings throughout our lives and God being our strength, our help and our salvation is an even greater blessing. God reveals His presence to us even at times when we least expect it. I remember there was one sister who was getting ready to go to Southern California for seminary. Unexpectedly, she had trouble selling all her furniture, and she kept praying for God to bring her the right buyer, but no one came. One day when she got home, she found that a burglar had broken in and took her the furniture. She was really depressed. Later on, when she was talking to her insurance company, she realized that all her furniture was insured and she was getting paid for all the stolen furniture that she had trouble selling! Hallelujah. This is a blessing in disguise!   A man's way is indeed limited. We cannot comprehend or see clearly the road ahead of us, but God often blesses us in unexpected ways. The trials that are mentioned here are predestined and Paul clearly knew that he was called to suffer for the Lord. As such, Paul had the right mindset to face all kinds of trials. Once you have the right mindset, you will discover that trials are not that difficult to overcome. All believers will face trials in life. The enemy uses all kinds of methods to attack us in order to weaken our faith, so that we may stray away from God. We need to understand the schemes of the enemy. Paul said, "We must stand strong in the midst of trials." Pray that God's Holy Spirit will strengthen our faith. No matter how the world circumstances change, our God is still seated on the throne and He never changes. Let us be comforted in the midst of our trials to encourage one another and standing firmly together in the blessing of our Lord Jesus Christ to experience victory for our lives.   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, I thank you because although we face all kinds of trials, your blessings come in all forms as well. May the Lord comfort and strengthen our hearts so that we can stand firmly in your blessing! I thank you and pray in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!    Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - Follow the project on Facebook ! Help us to reach our Phase I Target, and witness how God expands His Kingdom on earth!  Click here to donate online.