The ABC’s of trials are a difficult thing to comprehend; when we are puzzled and panicky. Yet, these are some good thoughts for our consideration.

James 1:2- “Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. “

1 Peter 1:7- “Pure gold put in the fire comes out of it proved pure; genuine faith put through this suffering comes out proved genuine. When Jesus wraps this all up, it’s your faith, not your gold, that God will have on display as evidence of his victory. “

The ABC’s are as follows:

• Allowed

God has allowed this in all wisdom either to qualify us or to purify us!

Job 23:10- "But he knows where I am and what I’ve done. He can cross-examine me all he wants, and I’ll pass the test with honors.

• Best Plan

He knows what is best for our life!

Jeremiah 29:11- “I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out–plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. “

• Control

Despite what our circumstances tell us or how we feel at the moment, He is still in the “control room” of the universe!

2 Peter 2:9- “So God knows how to rescue the godly from evil trials…”

Why this? Why me? How long? Lord, I thought that I was your “special child?” How can bear this? These questions are endless and God hides or keeps silent. He does this in order to stretch our faith to the limits- beyond the elastic limits. Still only God and God alone can sustain us in the mist of our hour of testing. ‘If we seek His face, He promises that He will give “the peace that passes all understanding.”

Philippians 4:6-7- “Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.”

“It matters little what form of prayer we adopt or how many words we use, what matters is the faith which lays hold on God and touches the heart of the father who knows us long before we came to Him.- Dietrich Bonhoeffer.”