He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. Ps 18:34-35 (NLT)
God is into training and transformation. He doesn’t have a magic wand that waves away all our troubles in an instant… He’s a teacher, a leader, the wisest in all the universe. He does, at times, do things instantaneously – I’ve seen people healed instantly… but more often than that, I’ve seen God gently lead and teach those He loves (which is everyone) down the path of life and His grace. In fact, I’ve never seen him heal a broken heart instantly. Some things take time, and time is where the real miracle lies.
“He trains my hands for battle; he strengthens my arm”. David speaks both physically and metaphorically here. He fought many physical battles and was perhaps one of histories greatest warriors. But he underwent heart and spiritual training with God. It’s easy to point out David’s failures and declare that the training didn’t work so well… But we don’t know of the countless times when David went through seasons of testing, moments of great decision, times of immense pressure where his training kicked in and paid off.
In my pursuit of fitness, I have ridiculously thought to myself how amazing it would be for God to take away my extra pounds and increase my lung, heart, blood and muscle capacity overnight. (AMEN, right?!). But there’s something about the training… there are things that you learn about yourself and God that you don’t otherwise. You learn resilience, you learn when to resist and when to rest, you become light on your feet and agile… not just physically, but in terms of our hearts and minds too.
When you’re heart is broken, or you’re recovering from betrayal, disappointment, failure… whatever it is that has broken your spirit, there are things you learn along the way that you wouldn’t if the pain stopped instantly. These training sessions and seasons are sacred and holy. The things you discover within them about yourself and God, if you allow Him to show you, are priceless.
Don’t despise the days of training. Even David said that it was God’s “help that made [him] great.” And like any other training, you will be transformed. And with God, that is from strength to strength and glory to glory.
So keep at it and don’t give up.
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