March 25

Rejoice

"But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed." 1 Peter 4:13

When we are going through trials and painful experiences and we see the hand of the LORD, what joy there is when His glory is revealed! When everything falls into place and we know that this trial has worked for our good, we have a peace and joy that no one can take away. But frequently we go through experiences in life where we do not see the reasons "why" or understand how the Lord is working. It may be months, or even years, before we see God reveal the lessons or the reason "why" we have gone through a special trial. If we are sons and daughters of the King, we know with certainty that His glory will be revealed in every aspect of our lives when we allow Him to work there. When we submit to Him and allow Him to change us through the experiences of life, we bring God glory and honor. We can be sure that "in all things" God is working for our good. When we acquire that kind of faith and confidence in our Father, we can rejoice that we have been chosen to suffer with our dear Lord Jesus and know that His glory will be revealed in due time. Let us go forth this day rejoicing that we have the opportunity to suffer with Christ, knowing that God is working in our lives for our best. May His glory be revealed in us and may we be filled with joy!

Father, help us to trust You when we cannot understand why You are working in our lives as You are. Give us Your joy; a joy that we can only experience through pain and suffering. Jesus, you knew the joy of suffering for your Father. Help us to experience that same joy. Give us that same intense desire to serve and obey that we might bring a smile to Your face, dear Father. It is not possible for us to do these things alone. We need You, we need Your support, we need Your guidance and we need Your love. With You beside, us all things are possible, even joy. Amen