Vital signs- Monday, November 16th, 2020

Sometimes when you’re in a dark place, you think you’ve been buried. But, you’ve actually been planted. — Caine

If you’ve read the Old Testament, you’ve probably come across the phrase, “

it came to pass.”

It appears over and over again, whether it’s mentioning the flood waters covering the earth or God giving the Promised Land to the Israelites. Notice the phrase is not

“it came to stay.”

The same goes for your spiritual valley. It will not be like this forever. It will pass.

But until it does, we’re in it. And what we do in the midst of it often determines the outcome. When we are in a season of feeling far from God, we need to look at how God

is

growing us and changing us. Here are a couple of byproducts of spiritual droughts.

- Increased Empathy

Chances are you’ve spoken with a friend who has gone through their own struggle spiritually. Just hearing them share may have lightened your load and encouraged you to stay the course. And because of your own journey, you’ll be able to do the same for someone else. It’s important to share with others the things we’ve walked through so that they can be encouraged.

-Deeper Intimacy

When difficulties come our way, we either run from God or to God. If we run from Him, we’ll never know what He wanted to show us during this season. But, if we run to Him, we get to know Him better, love Him more deeply, and trust Him more wholeheartedly. If we never needed comfort, we wouldn’t get to know the Comforter. 

We have to realize that we can’t overcome any of this in our own strength. It’s actually when we admit we are weak that we find His strength in abundance.

We discover a new level of power in our lives—

the same power that raised Christ from the dead is actually available to us at all times.

While none of us look forward to these difficult times in our lives, there’s so much spiritual growth on the other side. Maybe you lost your job or a relationship in your life, and it really impacted you. But once you are on the other side of this season, you’ll be able to look back and see where God was working and how He was changing you.

We want out of these spiritual dry spells so desperately, but maybe we should embrace them instead. We can look toward the future outcome of what God will do in and through us as we trust Him when we literally can’t see our next step. Let’s take it anyway. He will light the path the moment we lift our foot in faith.

Reflect

•

In what ways has your challenging season helped you see the bigger picture God has in store?

•

What step of faith do you need to take today that you’re hesitant to take?

“And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

‭‭II Corinthians‬ ‭12:9-10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬