See the End While in the Middle

Romans 5:3-4
3And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;4And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

Glory – v. to rejoice proudly

Patience – bearing provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like; the ability to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay; quiet, steady perseverance; even-tempered care

Endurance – the fact or power of enduring or bearing pain, hardships, etc.; the ability or strength to continue despite fatigue, stress, or other adverse conditions

Paul encourages us to rejoice in troubles, trials, and suffering. While on the other hand, we feel as though we want to crawl in a hole and die. Notice Paul does not tell us to be happy when we come out of the trouble but to be happy while we are "in" the trouble.

In the middle where there is trouble, but the middle is producing the end where there is patience, experience, and hope. This will make you better able to handle the next tribulation.

Your problem is giving you strength to continue despite fatigue. This world is full of adverse situations and circumstances. There is no way to avoid unfavorable things happening in your life. But God loves us so much that through the events that happen in our lives He allows us to "grow" through them. Because of our ability to bear the pain, we gain the experience. Once we have had an experience, we see God's deliverance, power, and love. So in the next problem, we have a stronger more confident hope in God.

My son was diagnosed with a terminal illness. The doctors said he would die within two years. Well one of my personal lessons from the experience was to obtain a new level of patience and endurance. Despite the end that was predicted by he doctors, Tevin lived for six years. This time frame was designed to confront me with delay so that my patience and endurance would be built. While in the middle of this situation, I continued to pray, fast, worship, go to church, read and study the Word of God, go to bible studies, and even praise him in dance.

Here is my breakdown of why we can be happy while in the middle because we focus on the end. Don't focus on the end that we think may happen, not the end that man predicts (doctors, family, friends, enemies, frienemies), but the end that God has promised. My faith in God did not fail because while in the middle, becuase I focused on what God says about the end:

God says that He has a plan to prosper you not harm you to give you hope and an expected end (Jer. 29:11).
Jesus says that He will be with you always even until the end (Matt 28:20).
Deuteronomy 31:6 tells us that He will never leave us nor forsake us.

When faced with a hard situation, rejoice! You not rejoicing beacause of the situation but because of what you know about the end. Know that God is using that experience to build your hope and faith in Him. As you look back over your life God has allowed you to go through and come out of many, many different things. He has always been there keeping you and He will always be there keeping you until the end. See the end while in the middle!