When Adversities Hit
When we look at the world today, not a lot of things are certain. However, one thing is for sure, we will face adversity. Whether a friend walks away when you needed them the most, or a "stable" job is no longer stable, and your employers decide they no longer need you. Maybe you chose to treat a stranger with kindness, and they chose to treat you with hate. Or maybe you've lost a loved one and you don't know what to do. None the less, these adversities send our hearts and our minds into spiral mode, and we can't find anything strong to grab a hold of and bring us back to where we need to be... with Jesus.
When we are pulled into spiral mode, we are allowing the enemy to plant seeds of self-pity, depression and defeat. When we allow him to plant those seeds deep in our souls, we take off our robes of righteousness that Jesus covered us with when He died for you and for me, and we replace them with rags and become beggars. If you Google the definition of a beggar, the first definition that pops up is, "a person, typically a homeless one, who lives by asking for money or food." (Google Dictionary by Oxford Languages). We tend to walk around down and depressed, feeling bad for ourselves and wanting he world to feel the same way towards us. In my own experience, I have found that when I did this, I was actually searching for the world to make up for the bad things that happened to me. That because adversity had hit me, and that I was struggling, the world owed it to me to make me feel better.
The problem with that outlook is that it is faulty. That plan doesn't, and will never, work like we want it to. You see the world is good at dishing out adversity, but it's impossible for it to make it right. You've got to allow God to be your vindicator because he is the only being that can, and will, make it right. He is the only one able to make up the time you've lost (Joel 2:25). He is the only one who can heal your wounds (Jeremiah 30:17). He is the only one who can give rest to your weary soul (Matthew 11:28). In order to prosper in our times of adversity, we must turn towards God and take off the rags that define us as beggar. We must put our robes back on and smile in the face of adversity because Jesus LIVES, and he didn't die and earthly death for us to walk around begging. Why? Because He is more than enough.
Beggars Can Be Choosers:
I'm sure that if you are old enough to be able to get on your smart device, or computer, and log onto my website, then you're old enough to have heard the old saying "beggars can't be choosers." I know I have, personally, heard the saying at least a hundred thousand times-if not more. To sum it up, if you haven't heard it (though it's pretty self-explanatory), one can't be begging for a crumb and expect a steak dinner. One can't be begging for shoes on their feet and expect a pair of new Jordan's. One can't be begging for shelter and expect a mansion. Sadly, this is just how the world seems to work anymore. There's a lot of people out there with no faith at all and, though they don't have much, they expect the world to give them what they feel they deserve.
While this concept won't work in the world, and I'm sure you can see why, it does work with God. Now, I'm not saying God will answer every single prayer you pray to him exactly how you want it. For example, your car broke down and you ask him to replace it with a 2022 GMC Yukon Denali edition with gold flecks in the paint. That thought isn't impossible, but it's not promised. What is promised, however, is "and my God will meet all of your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:19).
The best example of this that I have seen in my own life is like the situation my husband and I were in in 2018. Ironically it had to do with a vehicle too! I was three weeks away from giving birth to our oldest daughter, and I was in search of getting a new car with a lower monthly payment, but one that had third row capabilities. It needed to be reliable as our pediatrician's office was an hour away and we would be traveling with my husband for work. I had been praying for a GMC Acadia for years and had even test drove a newer one and loved it. I knew I needed one for sure but wasn't having luck finding one in our price range, nor was I having luck getting rid of my new Jeep because we owed more than it was worth.
One day, my husband had called me and said he had gotten rained out at work and was at a very unreliable, local truck dealer and was about to purchase a brand-new truck for himself (God bless him because he really didn't mean to put us in a bad situation). This threw me into orbit because the monthly payment for the truck was three hundred dollars more than what I was paying for my Jeep that I was trying to get rid of due to the large monthly payment. I cried because I was so close to having our first child, and we were about to be in over our heads in debt. After hearing our situation, my mom, who was in the market for a small SUV, offered to purchase my Jeep off of me for full asking price. I was ecstatic! But this left us with another situation... what was I going to drive. I was thirty-seven weeks pregnant, and my legs would cramp every time I tried to get in the extremely lifted F350. I couldn't imagine trying to get an infant carrier in and out of that thing after I delivered the baby.
Desperate to get something cheap and fast for me to drive, my mother-in-law told me about the dealership she used in the past that delivered cars right to your door. I logged on to the site and plugged in my preferences. Would you believe me if I told you that the first car that popped up on the page was a beautiful GMC Acadia? Because it was! It was much older than I had wanted, but the mileage was abnormally low for the age and there wasn't a flaw to the interior or exterior. When they brought it down for the test drive, I was days away from delivering our daughter. Contractions had come and gone, and I knew this was going to have to be it whether I liked it, or not.
When I got into it to test drive it, it stunk horribly of cigarettes and cheap perfume. There was gum stuck to the windshield in a place they couldn't reach to scrape it off. It rattled when I drove it and the reverse gear was almost shot. My father-in-law and husband both tried to talk me out of buying it, but I had already made up my mind and signed the papers for it. She was mine. I was scared to death and relieved at the same time. However, despite what everyone said and the fear I had it my soul, there was a still small voice saying "Taylor, I got you. This car was meant for you." Oddly enough, that voice (the voice of God) was right. I have driven this care for almost four years now and have only had to take it in to the repair shop once for minor repairs. This vehicle has taken us on family vacations, trips to my grandparents' house, and even all over the state and surrounding states for my husband's job.
God new that this SUV was built to take my family where we needed to be. It would outlast numerous, difficult layoffs with my husband's job, and it would bring home both of our baby girls from the hospital just days after they were born. No, God didn't bless me with the biggest, best, brand-new Acadia on the market. No, she doesn't have leather seats, or a heated steering wheel, or a built-in navigation system, but she has given us financial freedom through her low maintenance and low monthly payment. She has been a reliable family vehicle and has withstood the fire of chicken nuggets and fries being thrown within her doors. She has taken the beating of the rough back roads we travel home on and has faced down the inevitable trips from city to city as my husband's work journey takes him from state to state.
I was a beggar in need of a car. When I was faced with the opportunity to choose between self-pity and faith, I chose to believe. God wants us to ask big. He wants us to come to him. He may not give us exactly what we asked for, but in a roundabout way, he will always give us more than enough; more than what we could've ever asked for. God may not have blessed me with exactly what I wanted, but he blessed me with what he knew I needed. In turn, what he gave me was way more than I wanted.
What the Bible Says About Begging:
In Acts 3:1-8 NIV, we are met with the story of the lame man begging in front of the temple. When approached by Peter and John, the man began begging them for money. He had no idea who he was begging from, but Peter was able to give the man more than he could've ever asked for. He was only able to do this through the loving name of Jesus Christ.
"Then Peter said, 'silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you, in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth walk.' Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God."
The lame man was begging for change. He thought that that is what he needed to help him through the troublesome time he was facing. He didn't even know that being healed was an option for him. Honestly, asking God for healing may have never even crossed his mind. He just knew that if he dressed like a beggar to show the world he was faced with adversity, they may feel bad enough to throw their spare change his way. It wasn't until he met the two disciples, Peter and John, that he was blessed beyond belief. He just wanted some spare change, but they brought him the healing power of Jesus Christ.
Conclusion:
In life, we will be handed trials that, naturally, can get us down. We will be tempted to live in self-pity and defeat. In doing so, we tend to think either God can't give us more than just some spare change, or we go to the world for our comfort-expecting the world to make up for what we're going through. But God can give us more than what we've ever dreamed, all according to his riches through Jesus Christ. He knows what we need and can outdo what we have in mind for ourselves. His plan for your life will always be better than what your plan for your life is. You must keep your faith strong and keep believing that he will vindicate you. You aren't going through adversity for no reason. Take off the rags, stop begging, and start praying. He will take care of you. You just have to trust him.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
I want to take a quick second to pray for my beloved readers. There was a reason you brought them to my page, and I pray that you may have spoken through my message to them. I pray that you comfort them in their adversities and that they may seek you for their help instead of begging the world for spare change. May they come to you with their wants and needs and pray big because you are a big God.
A God of more than enough! Lord, whatever it is they need in their lives now, I pray that you bless them according to your riches. Father, I pray this in your son's name.
Amen
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