My phone rang as I was packing to leave my office.  It was the end of the day and I was surprised to see my realtor's name light up the screen.  I immediately assumed there was a problem with my house.  Since the original offer fell through, I braced myself for months of being on the market, and an empty house has random maintenance issues that seem to pop up.  

I picked up the phone.

"I just received an offer on your house.  I sent it over, check your e-mail."

Once again, I was completely surprised.  Last week, the surprise wasn't good news.  But, just as I'd made peace with bad news, a blessing appeared.  Ironic that it arrived the same way the bad news did a week ago.

"Its a clean offer," he continued.  "Nothing fussy.  Buyer wants to close in 30 days."

I scanned the document.  Sure enough, the offer was clean.  There were even inspections waived, which was a nice gesture.  If the offer was legitimate, it would be the easiest home sale I'd ever participated in.

Isn't it interesting that during the most challenging part of our trials, there's often a breakthrough? I was stressed and worried over how I would have time to maintain the empty house and afford two places.  After many sleepless nights, I made peace with circumstances beyond my control.  I budgeted down to my last dollar to make things work while the housing market changed.  I prayed for help with any shortfalls.

But, God already knew my house was going to sell soon.

Pressure tends to increase right before a break.  Or in this case, a breakthrough.  I noticed the same pattern a few days ago when I was reading about David in the Bible.  I've often thought I was a descendant of David based on overall temperament and other characteristics.  But, after studying what a great warrior he was, I've reconsidered.  After the first battle, I would have told God I was retiring from being a warrior.  Perhaps I would serve as a food supply officer instead.  I'd be good at handing out Twinkies on the battlefield. 

But not David.  

His battles were physical battles, not just stress over finances or a pending home sale.  Over and over again, the Bible sets the stage showing David seeking the Lord before going into battle.  Imagine the stress of approaching enemies with swords, knowing your people's lives were in his hands.  In fact, there seems to be more biblical details around David's prayers with the Lord beforehand than the actual battles themselves.  The battles were over quickly because victory was swift and thorough.

Perhaps the reason for the focus is because David's growth came in the preparation for the battle.  After the preparation had done its job, the breakthrough and ultimately the victory, arrived.  Is it possible the difficult part of facing trials is not the battle itself, but the faith and trust required to face what's ahead?  The growth is in the wait and preparation.

As I have pondered the idea of growth before a breakthrough, I came up with a few things I want to remember for my next trial.  

Obedience In The Wait

Every act of obedience, no matter how small, matters to God.  There are some circumstances in our lives that we have no control over.  I sold my house and moved out because I had an offer.  The offer fell through.  I didn't do anything to cause the circumstances.  The only thing I could control was my behavior through the challenge.  I could rage about it, eat a few bags of Cheetos, and throw a gigantic adult temper tantrum (I seriously considered it).  I could fire my realtor for not seeing it coming.  I could do a lot of things but nothing would change the circumstances.  My house had to go back on the market.  

We get to choose whether we're going to be obedient to God when things don't go our way.  Trials produce stress, no doubt about it.  But, how are we going to behave under the pressure?  Do we act out and hurt those around us?  Or do we seek peace from the One who created us?  Do I allow my natural redhead tendencies to run wild, or will I show constraint? (That's meant to be a rhetorical question, so I don't plan on answering it.)

I wonder what the Bible has to say about this.  

1 Peter 1:14-15  As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do;

Be holy in all you do.  God gives us a tall order.  I wish I could interpret it in another way, but He does not set the bar low for what obedience looks like.  God is telling us something that is difficult for me to comprehend.  We can align our conduct to God's character instead of our own.  

It isn't easy, but as I'm often reminded, we're not called to do easy things.

We can take heart, though, because obedience is not without reciprocation from God.  As we remain obedient throughout trials, we're going to look back and see God's faithfulness through every step of our journey.   Knowing our obedience is met with His faithfulness gives us confidence in our victory.  It removes fear from our situation and gives us courage to stay obedient, even when the obedient path is the more difficult path.

Soak In The Word

Trials aren't a time to take a break from Bible time and prayer.  In fact, now is the time to double down.  Make it a habit to spend time in God's word every day.  Even just a few verses helps.  Bible study combined with prayer can do powerful things and give us strength to withstand our trials.   Spiritual warfare is real, and any solder in battle needs to show up armed with weapons.

A few weeks ago, I had a night of absolute misery.  My anxiety was ramped up, and I had fear over everything.  I was afraid of a presentation I had to give the next day.  I was afraid of not selling my house.  I had anxiety coursing through my veins, and if I reasoned through one fear, my mind would jump to the next.

Finally, at 2 am, I decided I needed words of scripture to be read over me.  I wasn't calm enough to read to myself.  So, I found a Youtube video that recited various verses from scripture.  The video was over eight hours long, which was perfect.  I could have scripture read over me while I slept.  After about fifteen minutes of listening to Bible verses, I could feel my anxiety begin to calm.  I dozed in and out of sleep for the rest of the night.  I'd wake up with anxiety, but calm down again after listening to scripture being read over me.

The way we use scripture doesn't have to always be the same.  In this case, I used scripture as a shield to protect me through the night.  But, no matter how it is used, scripture is a spiritual weapon.  It dismantles Satan's attempts to discourage you and break you.  

1 Peter 5:8-10. Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

Prayer time along with scripture readings remind us that God's promises outweigh our problems.  When Satan reminds us of our past, scripture reminds us of our redemption.  When our mind wants to settle on our problems, scripture reminds us of God's solutions.

Watch For The Transformation

God uses trials to transform our character and create fruit in our lives.  Imagine a rancher setting fire to his fields.  He knows he's in control of the fire, but it is necessary to allow the burn because the new growth is more healthy.  The grass will grow back stronger, without weeds. In a similar way, trials allow fruit to flourish in the aftermath.  

Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law

As we read through Galatians 5:22-23, it can be easy to quickly skim through such a familiar verse.  Don't we wish we had these characteristics consistently in our lives?  Wouldn't we be better people for it?  

Of course, but let's really think about the fruit of the Spirit and consider the idea that God uses trials to create fruit in our lives.  These are powerful, powerful traits.  The fruit of the Spirit not only change your behavior, they change who you are.  They impact the lives around you.  They turn you into a light that shines in a dark world.  

God's goal isn't to punish us through trials.  Our God would never waste a trial in such a way.  His goal is the fruit at the end of it.  He goal is to change how we see ourselves, our relationships, and how we interact with the world.  

When going through trials, we can declare victory before the battle ends, because we know the end of the story.  Aren't we blessed to have a Savior!