And therefore will the LORD wait, that He may be gracious unto you, and therefore will He be exalted, that He may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for Him.
For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: He will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when He shall hear it, He will answer thee. And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers: and thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, “This is the way, walk ye in it,” when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left. Ye shall defile also the covering of thy graven images of silver, and the ornament of thy molten images of gold: thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth; thou shalt say unto it, “Get thee hence.” Then shall He give the rain of thy seed, that thou shalt sow the ground withal; and bread of the increase of the earth, and it shall be fat and plenteous: in that day shall thy cattle feed in large pastures. The oxen likewise and the young asses that ear the ground shall eat clean provender, which hath been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan. And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall. Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound.
Isaiah 30:19-26
adversity
Adversity And Strength
“If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.” Proverbs 24:10 (KJB)
Blessings Of The Chastening Of The LORD
“O LORD God, to whom vengeance belongeth; O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shew Thyself. Lift up Thyself, Thou judge of the earth: render a reward to the proud.
LORD, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph? How long shall they utter and speak hard things, all the workers of iniquity boast themselves?
They break in pieces Thy people, O LORD, and afflict Thine heritage. They slay the widow and the stranger, and murder the fatherless.
Yet they say, ‘The LORD shall not see, neither shall the God of Jacob regard it.’
Understand, ye brutish among the people: and ye fools, when will ye be wise?
He that planted the ear, shall He not hear? He that formed the eye, shall He not see? He that chastiseth the heathen, shall not He correct? He that teacheth man knowledge, shall not He know?
The LORD knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity.
Blessed is the man whom Thou chastenest, O LORD, and teachest him out of Thy law; that Thou mayest give him rest from the days of adversity, until the pit be digged for the wicked.” Psalm 94:1-13 (KJB)
Consider the Work of God
Days of prosperity often cause us to be joyful. Prosperity is not always dealing with gold, silver, precious jewels, fine homes and fine cars. Prosperity can just as well mean, a place to live, protected from the elements; food on the table, clothes on your back, and a wonderful family who loves you; and realizing every day that God in heaven loves, and keeps you. That is the best of prosperity.
Adversity – troubles, sorrows, pains, family troubles, health troubles, financial hardships, all of these come to us all at some point in life. I want us to see what the wisest of men; and one the most prosperous (in material wealth) had to say about both prosperity and adversity…
“Consider the work of God: for who can make that straight, which He hath made crooked? In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him.” Ecclesiastes 7:13-14 (KJV)
We out always see, to look at; to inspect the work of God. In order to do so one must see the work of God. Do you see the work of God? First consider yourself as a work of God. Look in the mirror. That image you see is in the image of God. Your body is made up of a very intricate system that works keeping these tents, moving, seeing, working, breathing, heart beating, legs moving, arms and hands busy. Consider. No one can make straight what God has made crooked. We must consider that what has been made crooked can be straightened by God Himself.
In these verses we can see that both prosperity and adversity have a place in God’s plan for humanity. Both are a work of God. They are opposite of one another, and so that we might not be able to know what lies ahead in our lives. We plan, we can save money, but no one knows what is coming tomorrow. Not even the wealthiest of us. The wealthiest man or woman in the world could pass into eternity before the sun sets this evening. Their wealth cannot prevent it. The same is true with the poorest of men and women.
“Consider the work of God….”
Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent. John 6:29
The One whom God sent is Jesus Christ His Son, God the Son, and He died on the cross, was buried, and rose again for you and me that we might have fellowship with God, the Creator of all things.
The Fire and Hammer 