What Happened to Easy?

Jeffery enjoyed an early success in business. When he launched his computer store he allowed God to be the first one through the door. Each morning he sat in his car and prayed before he unlocked the doors. As the business grew he began to hire additional help. Like any business owner expects, some of employees were hard workers while others could care less. His stress level grew, and it wasn’t long until his early morning prayer time went by the wayside. He began to manage on his own. Frustration and anger replaced his joy. Jeffery began to wonder why God allowed this to happen. After all, he’d begun the business with Christ as the center. Suddenly things became hard. What happened to easy?

It doesn’t take much to throw us into a quandary. Just a few small incidents and we fall apart at the seams. Whining, pouting, and feeling sorry for ourselves becomes the norm. That’s when it becomes easy to blame God, and Satan rejoices.

He loves to kick us when we’re down, then instill doubt and frustration. Satan leaps for joy when he sees us lay prayer to the side and attempt to make it on our own.

This same theory applies to our Christian lives. Things run smoothly for a time and then ca-whump. We hit a bump. Satan moves in for the attack. He sees us flailing, wandering by the way, and it’s time to add his two cents worth of bad encouragement.

“If God really loved you, He’d never let you lose your way. What kind of God would lie to His people or let you flounder?” snickers Satan. The worse part of this scenario is, as humans we’re easily deceived and convinced that God wants us to suffer.

1 John 4:16 tells us, “…God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in Him.” Now how is it, we fail to recognize this when the road gets a little rough? God loved us so much He sent His son to die for us. That’s an amazing love – one at times, we find difficult to fathom.

How do we fix these moments? The easiest remedy is to look upward and sing His praises. Rejoice in the moments of frustration, offer them up to God as His, and let Him comfort us. His love will never fail us. He will help us to overcome if we only trust.

The next time you’re feeling like a fish swimming upstream; stop, reassess, and then fall to your knees. Give up control and feel the arms of God drape around your shoulders. He will never fail you.

Prayer: Precious God, forgive me when I allow myself to be consumed by my own selfishness. Allow me to live in You.

**A special thank you to Melanie Dickerson, fellow writer, prayer warrior, friend, and my Visine for the soul. God places her perfectly to get me over the writing humps.***