UV 265-10,000 Adversity as the best university

Uni-verse 265/10,000 For better through verse Habakuk 3 v 17
Hab 3:17 Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls:


We seek the Lord for His presence and not for His presents. Even in times of adversity, we must continue to enjoy His presence and praise His name. He will strengthen us from within to face our challenges. Strength will rise up as we wait upon the Lord as in the popular song:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhMdWjL2kiU
Times of adversity are the best university for the believer who having nothing else to depend on in such times will walk close to the Lord. As a young police officer when I was severely injured in the Human bomb assassination of the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, everything seemed so bleak before me. With such a huge failure behind me, my future seemed uncertain: the labour of the olive was in vain. All my years of labour to get into the coveted Indian Police Service seemed to be in vain. Spiritually, physically and intellectually, I was greatly weakened. The fig tree and the vine had not yielded. Some believers said that I must have sinned and therefore, the Lord had allowed it to happen. Some relatives said that I must have beaten people with my hands and that is why my hand was injured and fractured. The pain was both very deep and very intense. I was a literally broken man. Every promise to me seemed to have been broken. There seemed to be little hope. The fields had yielded no meat. The flock had been cut off and the herd was not in the stall.

Yet as I held on to my faith in Jesus, hope and joy once again appeared first as a trickle out of the rock and bramble. Then, it became a gushing stream. A river of life. A cascade of joy and laughter. At first I limped. Then, my feet were strengthened like the hind feet of the mountain stag that I can once again romp free on the mountain heights.

Prateep V Philip