Recently, the Lord downloaded something into my heart – “If you move the letter “i” in the word “trial” it becomes the word “trail.”
Trials without the hope of their becoming trails can feel like desperate and discouraging seasons of life. Trials seem static if they are not leading us somewhere. Trails have with them the hope of a destination.
Above our home in Southern Oregon are a series of trails that compromise a trail system of about 14 miles in total. In this trail system are trails with various names like: Petard Ditch, Rich Gulch and Chinese Diggings. Each trail takes you somewhere that reflects the Gold Rush history of Southern Oregon. When I hike these trails each week I hike them knowing they will lead me somewhere.
Some trials in life are so life-altering that we can become lost in the pain of the trial and miss the greater work God wants to do in our lives. In the trials of my life there have been times when I missed this greater work of God because my focus was solely on getting myself out of the trial. I have come to realize that trials have within them a redefining work of God that can take place if we will move our focus off of self and onto God.
What changes a trial into a trail is where I position the letter “i” - the “i” meaning my focus on my self-interests. Whenever self-interests are primary, like getting out of a trial or wishing I wasn’t in such an experience, the experience will be seen only as a painful trial because my primary focus is on self and the pain.
When we properly position self-interests to come into line with God’s interests our trials can take on a radically different nature. The trials that seem hopeless become trails of expectancy. If you are in the midst of a trial, move the letter “i” and all the interests of self-protection that go with it and allow God to redefine your trial into a trail. It will make the hike a lot more enjoyable.
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