Psalms 119:66-67, 71

"Teach me good judgment and knowledge: for I have believed thy commandments.
Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now I have kept thy word.
. . .
It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes."
Psalms 119:66-67, 71


Interesting.  This points out a couple of things that I think we miss sometimes.  One is, that even when we truly believe, we still go astray sometimes.  Our priorities get tangled when we find something that rivals God in our affections... and whatever we love more than God becomes our object of idol worship.  Belief alone won't save us... obedience helps. :)  Hopefully, with faith, they go together.
The other thing is that afflictions teach us a lot.  Sometimes it is humility that we couldn’t' learn any other way... sometimes it is just that trust in God actually pays off.  Many times, when we are afflicted, those things that we thought were more important than God fade... but God remains, and if we can find the strength to call upon him, then he will deliver us.  Afflictions are rarely fun... but they can be good.  They can wake us up and remind us of the truth.  So, today... let's look at our lives and see what the difficult things are teaching us... maybe if we learn the lesson, they'll go away. :)