5 Reasons Why God Uses Problems

A friend sent this to me by email today.

How do you react when problems come your way? If you ask me, I would rather NOT have problems. My first instinct is to avoid anything that would cause problems. And yet, like everyone else, I have my own dose of these — and MORE sometimes. But as I read this, I felt my heart lighten. Having problems suddenly took on a new perspective, like a fresh breath of air. Suddenly, even the toxic day at my office today did not seem too bad.

And so I share it also with you — that we may all be blessed by it and see our problems in a different light.

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5 Reasons Why God Uses Problems :

The problems you face will either defeat you or develop you – depending on how you respond to them. Unfortunately, most people fail to see how God wants to use problems for good in their lives. They react foolishly and resent their problems rather than pausing to consider what benefit they might bring.

Here are five ways God wants to use the problems in your life:

1. God uses problems to DIRECT you.
Sometimes God must light a fire under you to get you moving. Problems often point us in a new direction and motivate us to change. Is God trying to get your attention? “Sometimes it takes a painful situation to make us change our ways.”
Proverbs 20:30

2. God uses problems to INSPECT you.
People are like tea bags…if you want to know what’s inside them, just drop them into hot water! Has God tested your faith with a problem What do problems reveal about you? “When you have many kinds of troubles, you should be full of joy, because you know that these troubles test your faith, and this will give you patience.”
Jam es 1:2-3

3. God uses problems to CORRECT you.
Some lessons we learn only through pain and failure. It’s likely that as a child your parents told you not to touch a hot stove. But you probably learned by being burned. Sometimes we only learn the value of something…health, money, a relationship. .. by losing it. “It was the best thing that could have happened to me, for it taught me to pay attention to your laws.”
Psalm 119:71-72

4. God uses problems to PROTECT you.
A problem can be a blessing in disguise if it prevents you from being harmed by something more serious. Last year a friend was fired for refusing to do something unethical that his boss had asked him to do. His unemployment was a problem – but it saved him from being convicted and sent to prison a year later when management’s actions were eventually discovered. “You intended to harm me, but God intended it f
or good…
Genesis 50:20

5. God uses problems to PERFECT you.
Problems, when responded to correctly, are character builders. God is far more interested in your character than your comfort. Your relationship to God and your character are the only two things you’re going to take with you into eternity. “We can rejoice when we run into problems… they help us learn to be patient. And patience develops strength of character in us and helps us trust God more each time we use it until finally our
hope and faith are strong and steady.”
Romans 5:3-4


Here’s the point:
God is at work in your life – even when you do not recognize it or understand it. But it’s much easier and profitable when you cooperate with Him. “Success can be measured not only in achievements, but
in lessons learned, lives touched and moments shared along the way.”

LIFE IS AN ECHO. What you send out, you get back. What you give, you receive.
WHEN YOU BRING OUT THE BEST IN OTHERS, YOU BRING OUT THE BEST IN YOURSELF.

MAY GOD BLESS US ALWAYS….

Choices

Some of our important choices have a time line.
If we delay a decision, the opportunity is gone forever.
Sometimes our doubts keep us from making a choice; thus, an opportunity may be missed.
As someone once said: When you have to make a choice and don’t make it, THAT in itself is a choice.
(from a text I received; author unknown)

50 Thoughts for Christmas (and for the rest of the year!)

I just saw this wonderful list in Ricky Lo’s Christmas article in Philippine Star and it was sent in by Robin Tong, a Xavier parent who has a flair for writing. It is a list worth sharing with you all. May it help us enrich our lives! And thanks, Robin!

1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.
8. It’s OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile (favorite Borg line from Star Trek)
11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.
12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don’t compare your life with others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don’t worry; God never blinks.
16. Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.
17. You can get through anything if you stay put in today.
18. A writer writes. If you want to be a writer, write.
19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take “no” for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: “In five years, will this matter?”
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your family will.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.
35. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.
36. Growing old beats the alternative! — dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
38. Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back.
41. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
42. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.
43. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
44. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
45. The best is yet to come.
46. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
47. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
48. If you don’t ask, you don’t get.
49. Yield.
50. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.

Life’s Wonderful Surprises and Simple Pleasures

A friend sent this via text today:

Sometimes we put too much passion on the biggest dreams & priorities in life

That we fail to love the smallest pleasures from simple things.

We search so much for the right choices, for the right paths to walk through,

For the right time & for the right reasons.

But life isn’t about searching for the things that can be found.

It is about letting the unexpected happen and

Finding things you never searched for.

Happiness is in the Home

(At the stroke of 8:00 AM everyday, a friend takes the trouble to send me beautiful sayings — sometimes downright crazy jokes too!. I thank God for this friend because today, I received a most beautiful thought. Now I will look at my home from a totally new perspective…)


The Secret to Happiness


What is the secret to happiness? I found the answer in my home…..


The WALL says BE STRONG.
The CEILING says AIM HIGH,
The DOOR says BE OPEN,
The WINDOW says LEARN to GIVE and TAKE,
The CLOCK says TIME IS GOLD,
The CALENDAR says LOVE EVERYDAY as if it is the last day,
The CABINET says KEEP THINGS in ORDER,
The BED says TAKE TIME to RELAX,
The LAMP says BE the LIGHT,
And GOD, who is found everywhere in my house says —
KEEP THE FAITH BECAUSE I AM WITH YOU!