Lemons or Lemonade?
As we stand for the restoration of our marriages and families, we have all sorts of negatives to deal with and overcome; the pain and anger of past hurt and betrayal; everyday disappointments (especially when our spouses fail to do what we expect and even what they should do); the physical loss of family and the lifestyles we are accustomed to; the heartache of loneliness (especially during holidays); and so much more. But when we learn to truly put our hope and confidence in God Almighty and rely on the power and promise of His Word, we will realize that just like a bunch of lemons, we have the option to change all of that; the same way lemons can be changed from something naturally very sour and unappealing when we squeeze them and add a little sugar to make lemonade; resulting in something very tasty and refreshing!
Genesis 50:20 says You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. And when we study the life of Joseph in Genesis 37 and Genesis 39-50,
and see how God took the trials and tribulations of his life and turned them all into something so awesome and God glorifying, we have to be encouraged! His life is certain evidence that no matter what others might do to hurt us, God can and will turn it all to good if we love Him and are living in accordance with His will and Word; in fact He INTENDED it ALL for good before any of it even happened! And we know that based on God’s awesome promise in Romans 8:28-34, which says:
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
31 What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?
32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.
34 Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
And that’s further confirmed in Ephesians 1:1-14, which says:
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love
5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—
6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace
8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.
9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ,
10 to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.
11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will,
12 in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.
13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,
14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
When we read the above passages of scripture and see just how God worked in the life of Joseph, we can rest assured that NOTHING that has happened or ever will happen in our lives is a surprise to God; He had it ALL predestined for our good and for the glory of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! So no matter how bad things seem; no matter how hopeless and pointless everything looks; no matter what comes against us and the restoration of our marriages and families, we have two choices. We can ignore the awesome power and promises we all have in the Word of God and continue to suck on a bunch of sour lemons or we can take hold of God’s love and goodness toward us and squeeze out every bit of hope found in His Word as we stand on it in faith and confidence for the full and complete restoration of our marriages and families; knowing that He CAN AND WILL bring it all to pass! But as with everything else in the kingdom of God, it all comes right back to whether or not we really believe the Word of God and whether or not it is written on the tablets of our hearts and whether or not we accept and acknowledge the truth and wisdom of Psalm 119:105, which says Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path., and that we live by EVERY word that comes from the mouth of God; just as Jesus reminded us in Matthew 4:4
However, we’ll only be able to change the lemons in our lives to lemonade when we truly believe and understand that There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the LORD. And that since no power that comes against us is greater than the power with us, just as 2 Chronicles 32:7 says, we can be strong and courageous instead of afraid and discouraged! And when we REALLY get that so deep down in our souls and spirit that we can’t be moved from it by any circumstance or situation, instead of fearing or dreading the negatives we can’t avoid, we will see them as just more opportunities to squeeze through the filter of God’s Word for even more lemonade! So let’s all put our faith and confidence in the awesome promises we have in god’s Word and be blessed and encouraged as we take every lemon thrown our way and trust God to bless us as we filter them through the power and promise of His Word and the power of the Holy Spirit!