I remember it like yesterday. Everything seemed like it was falling apart in my life. My family was my life and we had many problems. I felt like I was losing my children to evil and destructive things. The stress caused a strain on my relationship between my husband and I as we endeavored to work through each situation that we were bombarded with in this season of our family’s life. You guessed it. Our four children were all teenagers and we were in uncharted territory.
I was visiting with my “across the street” Christian friend and her pastor’s wife. As we talked about life and struggles I clearly heard the Spirit of God say “STOP magnifying your problems. Magnify ME!”
It was a clear rebuke from the One who guides and teaches me about living in Jesus Christ. It was a call to magnify the God I believed in and not my problems. I realized I was rehearsing what was happening with my children over and over instead of turning to God about it. I was focused on what was wrong (and boy did it seem like a lot was going wrong). The Holy Spirit’s conviction led me to a place of seeking God like I never had before. It was one of the biggest spiritual transitions of growth for me.
I started magnifying God in the different situations we were facing as a family that was under spiritual attack. I learned as I magnified the Lord in it all that He would help me by giving me wisdom, discernment, confidence and peace to deal with it. He filled me with love when I was hated by my own children (or so it seemed at times). He sustained me through it all. I learned how to pray as I had never prayed before. I felt as though I was praying for our very lives. My husband’s, mine and my children’s.
It was the fight of my life and I knew I had to stay pressed into Jesus, keeping close to Him and magnify God constantly. We continued to work through dangerous times for my children and what they had gotten themselves involved in but I saw God’s hand on their lives.
I saw God’s hand on my life. I saw God save some other teenagers too as we lead them to the Savior, the Son of the God we were magnifying in our home. I had scriptures everywhere. I laid on my face before God in prayer. I walked around our home and neighborhood praying. I stayed in the Word of God, my precious Bible. I felt the move of the presence of God on me and in our home. I was calling those things that be not as though they were because I trusted my God. He loves me and loves my children more than I do. Magnifying God in our home got us through it all. Like that old song says, Through it all, through it all, I’ve learned to trust in Jesus, I’ve learned to trust in God. Through it all, through it all , I’ve learned to depend upon His Word.
I now know for myself that God is always there. He is good. He loves us so. He never leaves. He is with us. He is for us. He sustains us. He helps us walk through this minefield called life. He is worthy to be praised and exalted.
