Scripture Reference: Philippians 1:12-25
God Can Put a Silver Lining in Every Dark Cloud – Continued
Read Philippians 1:12-13 for insight into this section.
During one of his most difficult experiences, as the darkness of uncertainty settled around him in his prison, Paul learned, again, that God gives a silver lining to every dark cloud. This is the very essence of what he meant when he wrote: “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).
Think of the great blessings that have come to the world as the result of hardships some have suffered. These blessings are silver linings on otherwise dark clouds.
Sir Walter Scott was physically lame and, consequently, was not as active as other boys his age. But out of these difficulties came the novels Ivanhoe and The Lady of the Lake.
Abraham Lincoln suffered from poverty with almost no opportunity for a formal education. But because of these hardships, in spite of them, Lincoln was able to empathize with the common, hurting people of his day so much so that he became known as “the great commoner.”
Benjamin Disraeli, elected to the House of Commons in 1837, was a Jew who suffered from racial prejudice. He was such a poor speaker that when he stood the first time to speak in the House of Commons, he was laughed down by his colleagues. But his dark cloud had a silver lining. Disraeli was the only Jew in history ever elected Prime Minister of Great Britain.
Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, suffering from tuberculosis, moved to the South Pacific in an attempt to regain his health. He didn’t find health there, but he did find the inspiration to write poetry and novels such as Treasure Island and Kidnapped, loved by young and old alike. His cloud had a silver lining.
Louis Pasteur was lame in one leg and suffered a stroke in his adult years, but his dark cloud had a silver lining. Refusing to give up, Pasteur developed the process by which children could be immunized against killer diseases.
Beethoven’s increasing deafness did not stop him from hearing great symphonies in his mostly quiet world and then putting those great symphonies down on paper to bless millions.
Handel’s depression and sense of failure became the catalyst that drove him to write the Messiah. Edison’s near deafness from childhood was a major factor, he said, in helping him concentrate in his quiet world. John Bunyan’s twelve-year imprisonment in Bedford’s jail produced The Pilgrim’s Progress, one of the greatest, most popular books ever written.
Charles H. Spurgeon, one of the most prolific and beloved preachers, suffered often from severe bouts of depression, yet still seeing God in his dark clouds has blessed millions even after he went to be with the Lord. His dark cloud became silver linings for countless believers and those searching for God.
One of the lessons we learn when the darkness descends upon us is that God can put a silver lining on every dark cloud.
To Be Continued
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD 