Acts 9:37 – SHE WAS SICK, AND DIED
Acts 9:37 And it came to pass in those days, that she was sick, and died: whom when they had washed, they laid her in an upper chamber.
Peter was in Lydda which was near Joppa where a disciple named Tabitha lived. Tabitha was a godly woman who had made coats and garments for many. However, even though she was a follower of Christ, one day she became sick and died. Peter came over to Joppa and healed Tabitha and there were many who believed in the Lord as a result of this miracle.
Imagine that Tabitha was your friend who had done so much for the cause of Christ. As you sat there that fateful day, you probably would have done a lot of mourning at the death of your friend. You might have asked God why he allowed such a terrible thing to happen to a person who did so much good. You probably would have found yourself in a daze trying to figure out why God was doing all of this and what was going to happen next.
However, several weeks later after looking back on all that had happened in such a short period of time, it would have been crystal clear what God was doing. You would have understood why God allowed Tabitha to die and you would see the great work that God was able to do in your community. None of this would have happened without Tabitha first becoming sick. God took what you thought was a terrible situation and turned it into a wonderful experience.
We do not always understand what God is doing through us today. We sometimes face difficult situations that we do not understand why God is allowing them to happen to us. However, sometime later, we should be able to look back at our life and understand God’s purposes for these difficult situations. If we are patient with God, and allow God to have HIS perfect way with us, then we will learn to just trust God.
When was the last time you prayed to God to get you out of a difficult situation? Did God answer your prayer? Sometimes God will immediately deliver us from a difficult situation so that we have a testimony of God’s deliverance that we can share with others. Other times God will not deliver us and instead we can go long periods of time suffering the consequences of the difficult situation that we face. It is often from these situations that God creates a marvelous testimony of how HE used this trial to prepare you for something greater many years down the road.
Moses was a man on a mission. Moses saw an opportunity to start delivering his people from the Egyptians and the next thing he knew, he was running for his life. Moses found himself in a deserted place but God was still with him. God gave him a wife, gave him some children, and for forty years, Moses had a job tending sheep. This seems like a far cry from the job of delivering the nation of Israel. Nonetheless, from these forty years, Moses learned the area where God would later have HIS children wandering. What seemed like a dead-end job to nowhere ended up being used by God for a much greater purpose.
When things are going on that we do not understand, we need to trust in the Lord. We need to be patient and allow God to be God. Do not try to take the place of God, if God is not changing your situation, there is probably a purpose and you need to trust God to fulfill HIS promises to you. It is not easy going through the valley of the shadow of death. However, HE is with you and HE will guide you every step of the way.