Easy

“You have been weighed in the balances and found wanting;” Daniel 5:27

When I became a Christian I knew my life wasn’t guaranteed to be easy. I knew that, Jesus said to pick up my cross and follow him (Matthew 16:24). Not to long after I became a follower of Christ, the real estate bubble popped and down went the market.

Shortly after that, the company I worked for had to shut down (real estate title insurance) because the business just wasn’t there. I couldn’t find a job making what I had made, so I started a cleaning career. I worked as hard and long as I could but, we still lost everything. House, cars, credit cards, and savings.

This seemed like the hardest time of my life but, truly it wasn’t. There have been tougher times, but God has always been there. I know that, I could have wavered in my faith through these times but I didn’t because my hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus blood and righteousness. I remember being so down that I could almost hear a whisper “curse God and die”.

The worse it got though, the tighter I clung to Him. We aren’t promised an easy ride. In fact we are warned that we will have troubles. We are told to count the cost, and not to take it lightly. Many say, you are who you are when no one is around. What about when your kids or wife see you in those times? They see how your faith in Christ leads you in times of trouble and need.

How do you act in the rough times? Are you lashing out in anger or depression? Both are easy to fall into but Christ is our strength. Let me encourage to draw near to Him in your times of need and in your times of plenty. If you can’t rely on Him for everything, your statement of faith is nothing more than that, a mere statement, not a real faith.

Jonathan Eckel