A Life Full of Idioms: A Blessing in Disguise and Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining

As a writer who is passionate about the use of words, I like to apply idioms to my life. Here are a few examples.

A Blessing in Disguise and Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining

A blessing in disguise and every cloud has a silver lining share the same meaning in my life. Just recently, my fiancé and I had to break contract on a house that God knew was not meant to be ours. In the challenging housing market in our city, trying to find a decently priced house in livable condition is like trying to find a needle in a haystack or seems like a dime a dozen (more idioms). As much as I wanted the housing situation to work out for us (Had it worked out, we would be married and in the house by now), God has other plans. Last week, I got my earnest money refund which was a blessing in disguise. I deposited most of that money back into the savings’ account and set some aside for my fiancé. He was probably going to need that money to work the Journey walk (for more information visit chrysalis.upperroom.org) over the past weekend.

What could have remained our earnest money was put to great use. Chad could not work the walk, but he found a young man to sponsor and I had the money available for him to send this young man on his Journey. The silver lining in this cloud (not getting the house) was the earnest money refund we used to send this young man on his Journey which greatly blessed him (the silver lining). He has been struggling with some issues and at his lowest point, he turned to the Lord. I believe he has turned over a new leaf (another idiom) and will continue to move forward in his walk with God.

Although idioms are not mentioned in the Bible, I believe examples of them can be found in Scripture.

2 Corinthians 12:10

Blessings in Disguise

We don’t often thank God for our trials, heartaches, and difficulties. Although we are willing to praise Him for His goodness, we sometimes fail to realize that even adverse circumstances are blessings in disguise.

Scottish preacher George Matheson had that problem. He realized that he was not as ready to praise God when things went wrong as he was when they went right. However, after he began to lose his eyesight, he changed his thinking. He struggled for some months with this weary burden until he reached the point where he could pray, “My God, I have never thanked You for my thorn. I have thanked You a thousand times for my roses, but not once for my thorn. I have been looking forward to a world where I shall get compensated for my cross, but I have never thought of my cross as itself a present glory. Teach me the value of my thorn.”

When we count our blessings, we should include the weaknesses, the hardships, the burdens, and the trials we face. If we do, we might find that God has used our difficulties more than the “good” things to help us grow spiritually. Why is that? Because it is in those difficult places that we discover the sufficiency of His grace. In our trials, we turn to God. As we depend on Him, we find that His strength is made perfect in our weakness (2 Cor. 12:9). Take a moment and think about the way God has led you. When you praise God for your blessings, do you remember to thank Him for the thorns? P.R.V.

Our Daily Bread, Thursday, April 14 (www.bible.org)

After going through the hardship of having to break contract on a house, I have unknowingly taken pleasure in this trial and suffered for Christ which in turn has been a blessing in disguise. I felt weak and discouraged in this situation and sometimes wanted to give up on the house-searching. So far, since January of this year, I have looked at fifteen different houses (maybe more as I’ve lost count) and none of them have worked out for us, yet. I don’t know what God has in mind for us, but in my weakness I must continually rely on His strength.

By relying on His strength, I put away my selfishness and yearning for a house when I used that earnest money refund for Chad to sponsor this young man in his Journey. Now this young man may encourage his wife to go on her Journey this weekend. If that be the case, I am willing to let God use me for His glory. As this blessing in disguise, I also see this trial as a cloud with a silver lining. In Job 37:21, “And now men see not the bright light [silver lining] which is in the clouds; but the wind passes, and cleans them.” Job had lost nearly everything in his life, yet continued to praise God in spite of hearing negativity my others (such as his wife and friends). Throughout my trial (as well as Chad’s) of finding the right house, I have heard enough negativity from others. I don’t need to be reminded how difficult the housing market is right now and it will continue to be that way for several years thanks to the oil field boom. I should not allow difficult circumstances dictate what God may have in store for us. As Job endured hardships, he believed that God could do all things and His purpose could not be stopped (42:2). In addition to his faith in God, Job prayed for his friends (the ones who spouted negativity) and God “restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before” (42:10). The silver linings in Job’s clouds were his double blessings from God. Right now, I am claiming these double blessings from God. I don’t know what they are, but He has them for us.