An Act of God

Posted on October 13, 2015 by America's Keswick in Freedom Fighters

Act of God

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. James 1:17

I remember one of the first conflicts as a new believer was rethinking the term “Act of God”. I would hear this term when a natural disaster would take place and an insurance company’s scape goat would be to use this term to nullify coverage. In the past my natural reaction would be to blame God for ruining people’s property and not providing the insurance to fix it, “mean old God”…

Now I’m not sure why there are natural disasters and I know that God allows these things to happen but when I apply the things I know about God and understand that He works all things out for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose I look for the good.

In his opening letter to the twelve tribes which are scattered, James the half-brother of Jesus and leader of the church in Jerusalem writes a letter to encourage, warn and instruct the believers in times of trials. His intentions are to help them focus on their hardships as something that is good.

In verse 17 James tells us that every good and perfect gift is from above and comes down from God to us. Previously he tells us not to be deceived, he goes on to remind his readers that God does not change or shift like something unstable, He’s the same God that, “Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures”, (vs 18), and saved us by offering us salvation.

I find that when trials come our way, they will be used to show us and others the legitimacy of our faith. In the old west there was something called “fool’s gold”, a brassy yellow mineral that resembled gold and would lead people to believe that they were rich. The test would come when acid was applied and revealed the thing that they were boasting about was not authentic.

So, I’m not sure what you are going through, but know that if you are a child of God it is a perfect gift and will be used to test your faith in order to grow you up spiritually. Amen? Rob Russomano serves on the full-time staff at America’s Keswick. He is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. You can email him at rrussomano@americaskeswick.org

Daily Bible Reading: 1 Samuel 1-3; Ephesians 3

Think About This: Holiness is the centerpiece of God’s attributes. Of all the things God is, at the centre of His being, God is holy. Never in the Bible is God called, “love, love, love,” or “eternal, eternal, eternal,” or “truth, truth, truth.” On this aspect of His character, God has laid the most stress. Tony Evans

This Week’s Verse to Memorize: You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the plots of man; You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues. Psalm 31:20