Our Triumph During Storms

     Are you currently going through tough moments? Has it been frustrating trying to embrace 2012 as a hopeful year?

     Early yesterday morning, I was looking through my Bible, trying to search for a chapter and verse to read. I guess I was having a rough moment, because I wasn’t feeling well and I just didn’t want to open my Bible. It was because of this feeling that I charged forward with searching for something to read in the scriptures. I flipped through the Old Testament, skipping Psalms altogether, which is usually my go-to book if I can’t settle on a specific location. I flipped through the Gospels in the New Testament. Finally, I came to Romans, which typically isn’t a book of the Bible I frequently visit but the word “faith” caught my eye, so I stayed within the book.

     The part I landed on was talking about Abraham’s faith. I read a few sentences about his faith and kept skimming through the book. It was until chapter 8 that something made me stop – I don’t know if it was the highlighted colors from my past readings, but my eyes went towards verses 31-39 and the heading above them titled, “The Believer’s Triumph.”

Verse 31 states, “If God is for us, who is against us?”

Verse 32 mentions, “…how will He [God] not also with Him [Christ] grant us everything?”

Verse 33 says, “God is the One who justifies.”

Verse 34 mentions that, “He [Christ] is at the right hand of God and intercedes for us.”

Verse 35 asks, “Who can separate us from the love of Christ?”

Verse 36 says that, “…we are being put to death all day long…”

Verse 37 says, “…we are more than victorious through Him…”

Verse 39 declares that nothing “…will have the power to separate us from the love of God…”

     I don’t know about you, but those verses really spoke hard to me and I had to let them soak into me for just a few moments. They simply declared that no matter what life obstacle we may be under, God is still here and nothing is big enough to keep us from His love. Look how awesome verse 39 is when you know that nothing has the power to separate us from the pure love that resides in God!

     Lately, I’ve been facing an inner battle of feeling like a hopeless failure. I recently graduated college with an associate’s degree and a bachelor’s degree (with two endorsements) in elementary education under my belt, only to find that it will be a fight just to find a job within this field. It’s a competition, and I’ve met many disappointing rejections since December of last year.

     Despite all the dead ends after applying for teaching jobs and going to interviews, and during the scared thoughts of “How am I going to pay my loans and help out my family?” I keep trusting in God. I know something’s going to come through, and I know this dark time of unknowing will be beneficial for me in the end result.

     But does that mean that I don’t have moments of worry, or times of feeling depressed? Sure I do! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve wished I could have done something different during interviews to make that principal know that I am just as qualified as the next candidate. But there comes a time when wishing to change the past just wastes precious time in the present, and all we can do is learn from the mistakes and apply it towards our next opportunity. However, you must remember that there is always hope, even during the dark moments, and no rejection, hiring freeze, or abandonment from others will ever have the power to separate us from God’s love!

If God is for us…

     In verse 39 of Romans chapter 8, the reference, “If God is for us, who is against us?” is another strong verse. I remember last year, during the winter break, I was busy studying for my state’s subject area exam for elementary education. I knew it was a huge test to pass, for my major, and the fee to take it was a little over $200. This was a big thing to pass, and a hassle to retake if not passed. I couldn’t afford to let my worries interfere, so I listened to Chris Tomlin’s song, “Our God” which immediately became my energy drink and anthem. In the song, there’s something strikingly familiar among the lines:

And if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us?

And if our God is with us, then what could stand against?

     In times of trouble…times that seem like nothing can overcome our trials…times that seem dark…God is our light, and He still loves us, and no matter what obstacle we are facing now, nothing is big or powerful enough to stop His love for us! He will be there with us, guiding us through whatever we face! And we will be victorious and have triumph in the end!