Blessed to be Distressed . . . Proverbs 24:10

 If you are slack in the day of distress, Your strength is limited. Proverbs 24:10

Why do distresses and troubles come to us?  I know that I would like it much better if I had a life without these things.  In fact most often I think that these kind of things are not just a problem - they are an annoyance.  Some equate such things to the devil - as if troubles never come to us within the will of God or have a purpose in what He does in our lives.  But they have tremendous purpose.  Without them we would face grave problems in the end.  Let's take a few moments today then and look closer at how God uses trials and distress for our good. The proverb today says that we are slack if in the day of distress our strength is limited.  The word "slack" here means to cease and desist, to become discouraged or disheartened.  To be slack in the day of distress is to lack the strength to face the distress or trial and thus to quit - become discouraged or disheartened by it.  How often have we faced distresses only to realize that we lose heart in the midst of them.  We don't have the strength to go through them without becoming seriously discouraged?  That is why they are given to us.  To teach us when we lack strength - or lack the kind of mindset that makes us fight when things get rough.  We need distresses because it is only when we are tried and tested that we can know if we are learning anything from the Lord.  It is only in these times that we will know whether we are just being religious - or whether we are gaining the strength to stand when things get difficult for us. 

Without distresses we would not know the joy of knowing that God's strength is sufficient for us to stand in any situation.  As we go through these things, we learn that our hearts need to be stronger and our minds more filled with God's Word.  We learn when our thinking is off and easily led astray in trouble.  These things are vital to us as we seek to mature in the Lord.  Yes, it is tough to go through a distress - and on top of it learn that our strength is limited.  But when we learn this - we turn to the Lord - realizing that it is only in Him that we will be able to stand in every distress and every trial!