Mrs Carol Hopson-Trusting God in Troubled Times

My way was to be angry, very angry, at their lack of sensitivity and planning. My way was to feel very sorry for myself and decide to never come back to this church again, if asked. My way was to just get through the retreat with my focus on getting out of there and getting home! But was that God's way? "Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another…" (Ephesians 4:32, KJV) came to mind. Would my wounded ego forgive these people? Then I remembered, "Do all in the name of the Lord Jesus…" (Colossians 3:17). That meant that even in this situation, my priority was to represent Jesus, to act as He would. The battle raged in me while the worship music played on. You see, I had yet another war going on inside as the fifteenminute praise and worship part of the service went on for forty minutes. It was now 9:00 p.m. and I hadn't even been introduced yet. I had a one-hour message, which they had notes for, and we were already an hour behind schedule. Are you getting a feeling for what was going on inside of my very human heart? "My sheep hear My voice and they know Me and they follow Me…" "OK, Lord, I am Your sheep, a very weary, frustrated sheep, but I will follow and leave all my anger and frustration in Your hands." At that moment, God began healing me and gave me a renewed desire to serve Him at any cost. The battle came and went over and over during the weekend, but each time I had to say, "I'll follow Jesus!" The last morning of the retreat, we had more than fifty decisions for Christ…both new believers and recommitments. Praise God for His work in all of us…especially me! Do you want to know the rest of the story? They invited me back the next year…and I went! And yes, I was picked up immediately this time! God's way was to do a work in me…to teach me that life and ministry are not about me! He was reminding me that I'm not in this for comfort or to receive special attention, but I'm doing this work because He called me to it…for His glory, not mine! As I put my injured pride aside, God drew me closer to Himself, and I could again thank Him for another lesson in humility and trust. Are you a Christian authorlooking for a quality publisher that offers over 25 years of experience and expertise? Have you written a book and want to start the publishing process? CSN Books offers quality publishing services including: editing , cover design , printing , and distribution. Check out csnbooks.com for more information and download their FREE Ebook, "Before You Publish." Learn what you need to know before choosing a publisher. We can be searched under Christian publishers or CSN Books.