The Struggle Bus part 5
The thing to remember, in the midst of trial and tribulations, is that it came to pass, not to stay. That there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and it's not always going to be a freight train coming your way. The thing to remember is that God--love--can, and will, keep you from falling. God can--and will--carry you through. And when you go through things, instead of getting stuck IN things (or letting things get into you), you can learn from your experiences. You can learn and grow. You can, in fact, take that experience and then help someone else when they go through something similar. Learning, growing, and helping others. That, to me, is the point of the struggle bus. And, listen, I'm not saying God MAKES "bad" things happen. I don't believe that at all. He is light and in Him there is no darkness at all. I'm saying that life happens. And we can choose how we react to what happens. We can focus on the silver lining instead of freaking out about the cloud. Every storm runs out of rain, right? Again, it came to pass not to stay. So while we might be on the struggle bus right now... we won't be forever. It won't be like this for long. Right now is right now, but right now is not forever. Letting things play out instead of always fighting against everything and everybody. Because even though it might look like bad, or evil, all things work together for good. We can take a longer view, look at the big picture, and understand that it's all a part of the grand scheme. The master plan. Look at Jesus's passion--all of the things He went through on the way to the cross, and then actually, you know, dying--those things, in and of themselves, don't look "good." They look horrible. Being beaten, spit on, mocked, and... you know... killed. Not a great day. Until you realize WHY He endured all that. Until you see the purpose of His actions. He could have fought back. Brought down a legion of angels to defend Him. But He knew what was really going on. What He was accomplishing by riding that particular struggle bus all the way to the end. And the end... was really a new beginning. For us. Jesus did what He did... for us. Because He loves us. The greatest love a man can have is to lay his life down for his friends. That's what Jesus said, and then that's what Jesus did. He put His money where His mouth was, so to speak. Didn't just tell us what love is, but showed us. Gave His life for us, and gave His life to us. Because that's what love is. Love is giving. The way to get off the struggle bus is 1. To endure. And 2. To give what you've got even in the midst of what's going on all around you. Ministering out of you mess is what gives people a message. A message about love. Showing people that love has no bounds. That love doesn't need ideal circumstances... because love PRODUCES ideal circumstances! No matter what you're going through, it doesn't have to go through you. You can be you no matter what. You can give what you've got no matter what. And when you don't feel like you have anything... you can lean on the Lord. Lean on love. Fill yourself up with what you've already been filled with. Let God carry you, lead you, guide you, direct you, and protect you!