the glory as He sustains us in difficult times and as we experience the victories He has in store. 2nd Corinthians 4 says this:
7 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.
In our humanity, we are frail and weak; we really are - but as the Scriptures teach us, in our weakness, He is strong. We can develop the mindset of yielding to the power of the Holy Spirit, always knowing that God's ways are best, that His knowledge is so much greater than ours, and that in His love, He is willing to demonstrate His wisdom on our behalf, because as we walk in victory that brings honor to His name. Ultimately, He works in our lives because He loves us, and He manifests His glory through us.
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The hand of God is working all around us and through us - and we do well to acknowledge that, to give Him glory, and be yielded to His operation and learn what He is teaching. Isaiah 55 says:
8 "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," says the Lord.
9 "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.
Well, the opening weekend of college football is now history, and I hope that your favorite team had success on the field. If not, there's always next week, right?
A running back for the University of Pittsburgh might not have had a next game, but he led his team out of the locker room for its game with Villanova on Saturday. You see, James Conner was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma last December, and Saturday, he scored the first two touchdowns for the Panthers in their 28-7 victory, according to SBNation.com. According to ESPN.com, Conner had 17 carries for 53 yards, plus 16 yards on 3 receptions. Not bad for someone who might have never played again...
Conner had not played since last year's opener against Youngstown State. USA Today reported that he had suffered a season-ending knee injury in that game. But, as he went through rehab for the knee and lifted in the weight room, Conner noticed he'd get out of breath quickly. His face was swelling up. He grew dizzy, and had trouble sleeping.
Antibiotics didn't help, and doctors were without answers. An ENT doctor ordered a chest X-ray, which led to a PET scan and the discovery of a large tumor. Conner had told USA Today in June, "You've got two veins; one carries blood directly to the body, one carries blood to the heart...That tumor was growing and was pressing on that vein. That vein was getting skinnier and skinnier."
In that article, he shared his view that the knee injury was a blessing from God: “If I never had this knee injury I would've been on the field and I probably would've been feeling out of shape and that I’ve got to work even harder. I’d be taking shots to the chest. I could've died on the field. I’m very thankful for my knee injury — I know He did that to save my life. ... He didn't want to harm me when He did my knee injury. He did it to save me."
After 12 chemo treatments and dedication to get back on the field, Conner trotted out onto the Heinz Field gridiron Saturday as the starting running back for Pitt, leading his teammates out on the field. He has been declared to be cancer-free.
USA Today reported that Conner has Jeremiah 29:11 inscribed on his right shin: "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"
I think there are several takeaways from this story, a story of resilience and determination, with a declared faith component:
First of all, we can be mindful to give God the glory for the victories you experience. Yes, we can exhibit certain qualities that are enhanced in the midst of adversity, but ultimately, we can recognize the hand of God to strengthen and sustain us during those tough times and grow in our faith.
James Conner proclaimed that God used a knee injury to get him out of the action, which actually led to the diagnosis and perhaps saved his life. There is a Biblical principle that God's ways are higher than ours, and He may use some other occurrence in our lives to provide strength or clarity in another area.
And, you can also think that sometimes we have to be still in order for God to get our attention. Maybe the Lord will take us out of our own respective field of play for a while to listen, to learn, to be built up in our faith.
Finally, remember that we may not always see how God is working, but we can believe that He is. Romans teaches us that He works everything for our good, and a verse in Philippians says that He - the One who began a good work in you - is working toward completion. So, we can believe that progress is being made in the product that God has ordained - our life in Him.
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