May 24 – An Illusion Undone (Isaiah 26:7-11)

“When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness.”(Isaiah 26:9)

IN WORD:
The strange tendency of human nature is to thrive under distress and to stray under prosperity. We usually don’t see it that way, because we define thriving in terms of our circumstances. But God defines it in terms of our attitude and growth in Him. And we grow best when we’re in trouble.
Why is that? Pain has been the catalyst for spiritual growth ever since the early pages of Scripture. We see it most dramatically in the book of Judges: Every time the people prospered, they strayed from God. Every time they cried out, He delivered them. Then the cycle would be repeated all over again. It’s a cycle we know well in our individual lives, and the principle is almost mathematical in its precision. Ease equals apostasy and pain equals a heart hungry for God. Why?
Because we are motivated by need. When all seems well in our circumstances, we don’t think we have needs. It’s a dangerous illusion because it masks the spiritual poverty we all share. Somehow, a set of circumstances that highlights our need — one that corresponds directly with our spiritual poverty — gets us to see the lack of self-sufficiency we should have known all along. It turns our eyes toward God in the physical, which in turn can turn our eyes toward Him in the spiritual. It’s His mercy that puts us in a crisis. Crises drive our once-passive hearts to Him.

IN DEED:
Do you consider this principle when you’re in the midst of a trial? It may not be the only reason for your trouble, but it is certainly one possibility. Your crisis may be the perfect occasion for you to “learn righteousness” — to direct your attention to God and to wait for His Word. He draws us close through such occasions. We are always given a chance to grow deeper into Him when our outward situation matches our inner condition. We learn to seek the One who matters. If you’re in trouble, seek Him zealously.

“The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials.” -Anonymous-