And it came to pass after this, that Benhadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. 25 And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove's dung for five pieces of silver. 2 Kings 6: 24-25 KJV
Samaria was besieged by the army of the enemy, subdued and facing starvation. It was so bad that they ate dung of dogs and some women boiled their children to eat. Times were hard in Samaria but whether we like it or not, hard times are part of life.
Never say a man is great until you see his end. The bible is very sure; we live in a fallen world. Hard times can come in different ways; financial, social, marital, emotional. But whatever we are going through now, it is not new. For there is nothing new under the sun.
When written in Chinese the word crises comprise of 2 characters; crises and opportunities. Therefore, each hardship is made of the crises and the opportunity that it brings.
The man Job in the bible tells us that, Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not. Job 14: 1-2 KJV
However right Job may be, Jesus encourages us with these words; I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In the world you have trouble and suffering, but take courage – I have conquered the world.” John 16:33 KJV
If you wake up tomorrow and situations of life change, the world will continue to go on.
What are the reasons for hard times?
- Lack of adequate preparation
- Past mistakes based on wrong investments, relationships, choices and friends
- Lack of understanding of the times (sons of Issachar understood the times)
- Compromises we have made, cutting corners, bribery
- Lack of spiritual discipline; no prayers, no fasting, no meditation on God’s words Joshua 1:8
- We forget that there are opportunities during the hard times
Any situation outside what God ordains as an answer to the hard times will lead to frustration because it is a solution that will not last. In a lot of times the solution to that very great problem may just be a very small solution.
We need God to make it through hard times for He alone can make a way out of difficult situations in life. Thus saith the Lord, which maketh a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters; Which bringeth forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power; they shall lie down together, they shall not rise: they are extinct, they are quenched as tow. Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43 : 16 -19 KJV.
