“Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man!”
—Luke 6:22
If you and I are determined to live for God, we will face times of adversity. The words of Jesus in today’s verse make it clear that we will face persecution for our faith.
That was certainly the case of Joseph who lived a godly life in front of his family and yet he was sold into slavery. He lived a godly life inside Potiphar’s house and yet he was falsely accused, maligned, and imprisoned. And Joseph even lived a godly life in prison and yet was forgotten and left there to die.
Miraculously, through all these hardships, Joseph never became angry or bitter. He trusted God’s purpose in his life. So Joseph grew in wisdom, courage, character, and endurance through the prison of his circumstances. In fact, Psalm 105 says that God put iron into Joseph’s soul through those difficulties.
Listen! Hard times are ahead for us, too. We need the iron in our soul that comes from walking through adversity God’s way.
When adversity comes your way, trust God with your life. Don’t let adversity make you bitter, but allow it to make you a better follower of Christ Jesus.
WE NEED THE IRON IN OUR SOUL THAT COMES FROM WALKING THROUGH ADVERSITY GOD’S WAY.
