Reflect:
Exodus 14:10-11
As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt?”
So you want a testimony, do you? I do too! But are you willing to go through the circumstances that precede the testimony? Are you willing to have your back against the wall, to know that unless God comes through you’ll go down in flames, to despair even of life? Those are the conditions out of which great testimonies are born.
Joseph had to spend some time in the pit before God lifted him up as the “prince” of Egypt—next to Pharaoh, second most powerful figure in all of Egypt. David had to actually go out onto the battlefield and stand before Goliath before he became a giant-slayer. Daniel had to literally get tossed into a den full of protein-loving lions for the angel of the Lord to come and clamp their canines. Paul had to cruise into the midst of a deadly storm in order to survive an otherwise deadly shipwreck. Jesus had to go through the ordeal of the cross in order to overcome the grave.
You get the point, don’t you? Sadly, too many Christians don’t! They want the testimony without the trial. Sorry, it doesn’t work that way. You cannot separate the crown from the cross. In the Christian faith, the road to glory is along the path of suffering. Now I realize that is not the greatest slogan for a recruitment campaign, but it’s true. Not because God is some kind of celestial masochist, but the reality is this present world is under the dominion of sin. And the Bible clearly warns that it takes warfare to bring it back and put it under the dominion of its rightful Ruler—and along the way, soldiers will get wounded.
Though it doesn’t make for an attractive recruitment campaign to Christianity, there is no testimony without a trial. The Bible clearly promises that the path to the crown is by way of the cross. However, it also promises that whatever discomfort, discouragement and pain Christians experience for the sake of their faith will pale in comparison to the story they receive and the glory God receives.
The children of Israel desperately wanted God to deliver them from their bondage in Egypt, but they complained bitterly when it caused them discomfort. On more than one occasion they whined at Moses and complained about God because they weren’t consulted about the Divine deliverance plan.
Now God graciously put up with their moaning, but he came really close to losing his cool on occasion. Ultimately God delivered them, in spite of their bellyaching, and they ended up with a terrific testimony. But they were forever tagged with the whiner label.
Here’s the deal: Don’t be that way! If you want a testimony—and I think you do—trust God to bring it to you in anyway he sees fit. Just trust, don’t complain—even with the not-so-pleasant stuff that precedes the testimony. Later on, whatever discomfort, discouragement and pain you experienced will pale in comparison to the story you end up with—and the glory that goes to God. As Charles Spurgeon rightly observed,
“Many men owe the grandeur of their lives to their tremendous difficulties.”
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