Welcome to life! The Tide Naturally Turns – Don’t Be Caught Off Guard

Life is interesting. Whilst one person is celebrating, another is anxiously waiting on God for one thing or the other and then there is the other person who is in tears. Sometimes all of these can even be happening in one family or amongst a group of friends. This is a reality of life that we must accept, whether or not we are believers; these things happen even to the poor and to the rich. However, the wonderful thing about being a believer is the fact that during the ‘lows’ of life, one can stand on the sure word of God that He will come through though you may not know how or when He will. That sure anchor helps one ‘keep it together’ during the low times. I know that the promises of God sometimes seem like mere words but they are more than that. You may not know the difference they make until you don't have them. 

Hebrews 6: 18-19 “So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary.”

The tide of life really does turn in every life from time to time so welcome to life! One cannot wish away or hide from such turns. I know some people who struggle to make a lot of money so that when the tide is low for them the money will act as some sort of buffer or even fix the situation; unfortunately, they find out too late that the things life throws at us are often not things that money can fix and even when they are, one is left with little or no money by the time it is all over.  Money, in itself, is a good thing to have but it can’t and should never be an anchor or the source of one’s hope. Remember, money can disappear suddenly leaving one with nothing. Indeed, it has wings and can fly away.

Ecclesiastes 3: 15 “What is happening now has happened before, and what will happen in the future has happened before, because God makes the same things happen over and over again.”

The turns in the tide of life work to keep men balanced. We have to learn to take them in our stride and not be obsessed with discovering the reasons we have ‘lows’. Sometimes, these things cannot be explained by mortal man so we just learn the most we can from every situation and move on. There is often something to learn as God continues to spin the will causing even the ‘lows’ to work good for us. I am convinced, for every believer, no matter how low it gets, it shall be high again bringing you to a better place though it may seem like this ‘low’ shall never pass. Also, you are not the only one in a ‘low’; there are other people around you who are or have been and others who will be there. 

Some lows last longer than other; so don’t fret. Sometimes the turning of the tide is sudden and at other times, it is a process but you will come through because you are an overcomer. This turn in tide is just life and has nothing to do with something you did or did not do. Our first recourse is often to think that we must have offended God but it is not that. The ultimate measure of whether or not one pleases God is in the person’s end and not the way life happens to them. Please take your eyes off what is happening in other people’s life, difficult as that may be, and focus on God instead. You need all your energy to come through this ‘low’ successfully.

Psalm 73: 16 – 19 “So I tried to understand why the wicked prosper. But what a difficult task it is! Then I went into your sanctuary, O God, and I finally understood the destiny of the wicked. Truly, you put them on a slippery path and send them sliding over the cliff to destruction. In an instant they are destroyed, completely swept away by terrors.”