Has Life Knocked You Down? Get Back Up!

Have you ever been cruising through life; hitting on all cylinders; on top of the world, only to be way-laid by one of life's sneaky left hooks? You suddenly find that what seems so together is now coming apart at the seams and becoming a monstrous mass of chaos you just can't manage! What do you do? In 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verses 7-10, the Apostle Paul gives instructions to help us battle on when life sets us back from our original plans. The passage states: “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. 8 We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed— 10 always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body." When life overwhelms people of faith, it presents an opportunity for the power of God to be prominently displayed in our weakest moments and gives us the further opportunity to express hope and courage that comes from knowing that God is worthy of our trust. For that reason, we don't wail and whine when hard times come, but we rather live with joyful resolve that God can give us the strength we need to endure and to overcome! Pastor Stuart Briscoe describes what our mindset should be in this way. He says that we are, "Stretched but not snapped - Blitzed but not sacked - Knocked down but not counted out!" Pastor Tony Evans paraphrases Mighty Mick of Rocky Fame to describe what we should do when we've been knocked down a few pegs. Dr. Evans states that we should "Get up! Get UP!! GET UP YA BUMS BECAUSE JESUS LOVES YA!!!" The love of Jesus compels us to press on when we've been deeply hurt and to get up when we've been savagely beaten up by the tough times of life. Therefore, if you find yourself under siege by life's difficulties, realize you're in a great position to see God's hand at work in your life! It's time to sit up, shake the cobwebs out and get up and fight because God loves you and will give you the strength to fight another day!