If It Don’t Kill You It Will Just Make You Stronger

It’s been a while since I have blogged.  I have been doing lots of pondering and bantering in my mind of late which explains why I haven’t shared anything on my blog page.  This exercise of pondering has proven, in most cases, to be a dangerous occupation for me.  Are you familiar with the saying an idle mind is the devils play ground? Well, if you are, then you must know that I certainly am no exception to this draconian rule.

I have been thinking about the many difficulties that ordinary folks face and what I have come to realize is this.  Many times unknowingly folks tend to live in an imaginary protective bubble.   Meaning and certainly I am guilty of this, their personal problem’s are the only thing in life that matter. Often, when I face very difficult times my prayers tend to be primarily self focused. I tend to pray things like, and I’m just being honest here “God take this problem away or make it better just do something. Amen.”  I realize that difficult times have a way of making you think only about ducking and covering. But something I can remember hearing from my parents when I was much younger and I think it’s a truth worth repeating and remembering “if it don’t kill you it will just make you stronger.”

I know I have ADD because I have to mention something here that is relevant but off subject a bit.  The other day I was listening to NPR radio which stands for National Public Radio.  Anyway, there was a segment on about the Lost Boys of Sudan Africa.  The country of Sudan between the years of (1983-2005) was torn by civil war and as civil war goes in that part of the world 27000 young boys along with other members of their family fled on foot and walked barefooted from Sudan to Ethiopia. Many of those fleeing Sudan died along the way.  However, several of these now refugees survived the treacherous journey. Did I say they were mostly traveling bare footed through the ruff terrain of Northern Africa, no shoes…..wow!  The United States granted 3800 of these lost boys citizenship.  The good news is that a large majority of these boys have went on to get advanced degrees and many of them are thriving and living financially independent in a foreign cultural that they knew absolutely nothing about which again validates to some extent what I want you to get from today’s blog, “if it don’t kill you it will just make you stronger.”

OK, let’s see where was I?  I need to give you some bible to help get this truth down into your spirit.  If you got a minute go grab a bible you might want to read more than I’m going to quote here, Phil1-21-23 “For to me to live [is] Christ, and to die [is] gain.22But if I live in the flesh, this [is] the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.23For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:24Nevertheless to abide in the flesh [is] more needful for you.” I need to give you some background information here that will help you understand the truth we want to communicate here.  Paul is in prison for doing what God called him to do and the blessing he received for his obedience was a Roman prison sentence! Yea, you read correctly a Roman Prison!!  So then, it would seem fair and reasonable for Paul to be angry and to some extent hacked off at God.  After all, Paul was only doing what God called him to do, right?  But, and there’s always a but, let’s try and gain more insight from Paul’s point of view. 

Paul says in verse 21 “for me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” But why does Paul say this? It’s true he is in Jail for following Christ but why is his perspective so, I don’t know, so positive?  The answer to that question is found in verse 20 “According to my earnest expectation and [my] hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but [that] with all boldness, as always, [so] now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether [it be] by life, or by death.” It seems that Paul has learned a deep but very simple truth. He has learned that his life is all about making much of Christ and as long as Christ is being glorified in a trial that he happens to be facing then it is both a good and positive exercise. Now I can’t honestly say that I’ve reached this level of spiritual maturity but one thing is for sure “If it don’t kill you it will just make you stronger.” So I know as long as I have life I still have trials that I will continue to face. However my prayer is that as I suffer God will help me to grow stronger and that my suffering be a result of my boldness of wanting to make much of Jesus. Because I know that he has already made much of me.