Through All of It

Source: YouTube

In the above music video, Through All of It, by Colton Dixon; several people personally shared their struggles, hardships, challenges, and trials in their lives.  Through watching the video, we found out that they came through all of it with God's help as well as for His glory.

All people go through stuff in life.  Some may endure much more than others.  However, there is not one person in this world who has not endured something during their entire lifetime.

I remember many years ago when I had somewhat of an idyllic life.  I was in high school or college at the time.  That was decades ago now though.  That was way before I lost my mom to metastatic, malignant cancer; suffered through an abusive, co-dependent first marriage; witnessed my Dad's two separate re-marriages, and lost many other relatives to illness, disease, or just plain old age.

Since then, I have endured a lot more in both my life and ministry.  

Through rejection, accusations, confusion, arrests, jail, convictions, judgment, prosecution, injustice, neglect, doctors' diagnoses, surgeries, hospitalization, abandonment, homelessness, unemployment, poverty, loss, domestic violence, separation, divorce, underemployment, misjudgment, criticism, persecution.

All Christians have endured and suffered through hardships, challenges, and trials in life.  What are some of yours?

The Apostle Paul was all too familiar with challenges, hardships, and trials during his life and ministry.

"Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything."  (2 Corinthians 6:4-10, NIV)

I can identify with Paul in a lot of ways.  He was a writer and author of the majority of the New Testament.  He probably endured more than any of Jesus' disciples.  However, he did not give up.  He persevered through all of it.  He had quite an adventurous life and ministry with all of its ups and downs.  I have also had many valleys and mountains during my life and ministry so far. 

We are always given over to death for Christ's sake, so that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our physical bodies (See 2 Corinthians 4:10-12).

"But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.  We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed."  (2 Corinthians 4:7-9, NIV) 

Though we go through stuff in this life, we are not alone.  God never leaves us nor forsakes us (See Deuteronomy 31:6, 8).

We can also count on Him to rescue us, deliver us, and save us from the fiery furnace, the lion's den, the pit, or whatever else (See Genesis 37; Daniel 3, 6).  He always helps us to get out and back up.

"for though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again..."  (Proverbs 24:16, NIV)

The Christian song, Through All of It, by Colton Dixon would be my theme song if I had one for my life and ministry.  What about you?  What would be your theme song?  

Copyright 2016 by Dawn Freeman. All rights reserved.