Victims or Victorious

Victims or Victors

“In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God, in Christ Jesus concerning you” 1 Thess. 5:8

 

When I was young, I was bullied by kids at school and then bullied by my brothers at home. I rarely made lasting friends because I moved about 10 times before I got out of high school. My pre-teens were rough because I came from a family of 9 kids and we were very poor, and the kids made fun of me because of the old, wrinkled hand-me-downs I wore. I rebelled and became a hippy became a rock drummer and got into drugs.  But at 17 I got saved and became a Christian. Things did not get any better. Because I had shoulder length hair, I got called “Jesus Freak” by the world and dirty hippy by the church. I just didn’t seem to fit in.

Growing up I could tell you of a thousand abuses, difficulties, hardships and persecutions I have gone through. But in all that, I never saw myself as a victim. I would never blame all that on a group or a race and certainly would never expect reparations for any of it. What happened to me was life! Life is hard and not everything is fair, but all those things made me who I am today. All those difficulties helped form me into what I am. I have maintained my faith for over 50 years now and realize that “in everything” there is a purpose and God has been there with me through the fire and trials.

Many people today are being taught that they are a “victim” so that your focus is not on yourselves and the lessons to learn from all this, but they try to get you to focus on others and the people who have victimized you. They make demands on justice not realizing that there is always justice, it is sometimes justice delayed. If justice does not come now, God will always bring it in the end.

Jesus told the story of the rich man that lived his life in pleasure while he ignored the beggar at his gates. In life it seemed like there was no justice for the suffering of the beggar, but Jesus said when they both died, the rich man found himself in Hell and the poor man in the comfort of Abraham’s bosom. Heaven was the poor man's reward and Hell was the rich man’s justice.

Even many Christians and young people are buying into this “Victimhood” mentality and are thinking themselves wronged by people, churches, pastors, the world and other Christians. My friends, let it not be so. The world is always looking for someone to blame. But that is not our concern. Whether it is the devil, demons wicked men or so-called Christians, God will deal with that. We are to give Him thanks for all things and allow the working of life to hone off the rough edges of our life and polish perfection into our character. Difficulties can have purpose and God often uses circumstances to develop the character of Christ in you. Jesus was greatly abused, mocked, laughed at and rejected by men. Yet he never spoke back. He entrusted himself to the Father. In the end we are not to see ourselves as victims but as Overcomers in Christ! In the end we must see ourselves not as Victims, but Victorious!