Week Three - Observation 1

Starting our third week of studying the material in "Living Victoriously in Difficult Times" by Kay Arthur and Bob & Diane Vereen.  I hope you're finding this study applicable to the difficult times we're going through and also for preparing our lives to endure even more difficult times, should they come.  Trusting all our days to our heavenly Father - He alone knows what our futures bring.

This week is going to pose a question that has been asked by people for countless years:  Why does God allow people, especially believers in Him, to suffer and why does He permit pain in our lives?

Have you ever wondered that?  Why do such good people go through such hard times and why are people around the world being slaughtered because they believe in Him?  Where is God and why does He allow this to happen?  The problem of ongoing suffering and pain in the world is one of the main arguments that atheists will throw at you - "why does your God allow all of this?"  That's what we're going to try to answer this week.

The verse we're going to memorize this week is:  

"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us."  Romans 8:18

OBSERVATION:

John 15:18-21  "If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me before it hated you.  If you were of the world the world would love you as its own.  However, because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of it, the world hates you.  Remember the word I spoke to you, 'A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will also keep yours.  But they will do all these things to you on account of My name, because they don't know the One who sent Me."

1 Peter 2:18-21  "Household slaves, submit your selves to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the cruel.  For it brings favor if, because of conscience toward God, someone endures grief from suffering unjustly.  For what credit is there if you endure when you sin and are beaten?  But when you do good and suffer, if you endure, it brings favor with God.  For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in His steps.

Just by reading through these passages of Scripture, can you tell this is going to be a hard lesson  These words are so counter-culture, especially right now in our current class divisions and racial strife.  Some of the ideas presented really go against us --- what do we do with that when we feel differently than what the Bible says?  We dig.  We look at it again and see true meanings and we do our very best to not change that true meaning to fit what we want Scripture to say to us.

First Jesus tells us that it is going to be quite natural for Christians to be hated and to be persecuted.  Why?  Because we should be opposed to the natural world, just as Jesus was.  The world has a different agenda than we should have as Christians, and people of the world are going to fight against us because of that.  If Jesus, our Master and the One completely perfect man who ever lived, was hated and reviled because of His nature, and if we are supposed to be conforming to His nature, how is the world going to react to us?  Why should opposers of Christ treat us any better than they treated Him.  If we have truly established Christ as the Master of our lives, than we can expect nothing good from the people of the world who crucified Him.  They have never known our Father God, and they do not know His Son.  We do - and they don't like what we have to say or how we choose to live.

Peter admonishes slaves, or sometimes translated servants.  And this is the passage that is hardest for us to understand and apply.  It really seems as if Peter is saying that God will give favor to those who are treated cruelly by their masters without striking back or being upset about it.  Look at the caveat in this passage though, "if, because of conscience toward God."  Just being meek and taking a beating  (particularly one that may be well deserved for misbehavior) doesn't bring God's favor, but "if, because of conscience toward God" a servant has behaved in a manner that is in line with his Christian beliefs and his obligation to Jesus, and that behavior is met with cruel treatment from the master, than that suffering brings the servant into God's favor and the support of the Holy Spirit in the suffering.  That's the way I am reading through this passage - I am very interested in what your thoughts are!

If we are doing good, if we are living Christ-honoring lives, being a light in this dark world, and we endure through it, God takes note.  Don't ever think He doesn't.  

In all things, Christ is our example.  He is our example in suffering as well.  Don't ever think that we are guaranteed an earthly life without suffering.  Christ suffered for us - we may well suffer for His name.  And should it be so, we are honored to do so.  Quite different from religions who promise eternal reward for acts of violence, murder and hatred - we Christians are asked to suffer for our Master by following Him in suffering, and some, even through martyrdom.  

These are hard truths to accept - that God not only allows us to suffer for Christ, but tells us to expect it.  Why?  Is He the cause?  Never - it is because the world does not know Him, the world opposes everything about God and His love for mankind.  And we are part of this great force that the world holds in such disregard and hatred.  "In this world, we will have trouble" because this world is not our home.  

                                                      

Keep our eyes on the prize!  We will go home to where all will live in perfect alignment because all will be serving the same Master!  

Let me know your thoughts!  Just to keep things simpler, please just e-mail comments to me at janicehodges1356@gmail.com.  I'll bring them over to the blog - it seems some people are having problems commenting directly to the blog.  I really want to hear from you! 

In His Amazing Love,

Janice

Heads up! Changing posting time to in the a.m.! Look for Week Three - Observation 1 tomorrow morning!

Week Two - Observation 5 and Wrap Up!

Excuse my tardiness!  We had a delayed "Happy Birthday" dinner last night for our two July birthday girls, Tamara and McKinzie.  By the time we got the patio cleaned up and did our new nightly regimen of medical care, I was just too tired to sit down and get my thoughts together in any kind of order that would make any kind of logical sense!  So, I decided to spend my time this morning with Robert still sleeping to sit right here on the patio and contemplate what we have read and thought about this week.  It's a beautiful morning that I first got to experience with an early morning walk with a new friend - that's a real blessing, isn't it?  Three blessings really: a beautiful morning with a glorious sky, the ability to move and walk freely (you don't realize what a blessing that is until you see it taken away from someone), and the company of a new friend!  I truly believe God places people in your life at specific times for specific reasons.  He makes life interesting that way, doesn't He?

We're finishing up Week Two - are you looking at living through difficult times any differently than you have before?  That's what we want to accomplish through this study.  I hope you're spending time really thinking through these Scriptures and allowing the Holy Spirit to make them come alive to you and speak to you in ways you haven't heard these same Scriptures before.  To me, that's the best part of Bible study, when you read through a passage that you may have read 100 times before, but all of a sudden you get tremendous new meaning from it, or you see something so clearly that you've never seen before.  That's when you know the Holy Spirit just blessed you with a little more Godly wisdom than you previously had, and you just lean back and smile.

Remember, our question this week is:  What is the purpose(s) of suffering in a believer's life and in what different ways can we suffer?

And our verse to memorize this week will be one that we probably already have a jump start on, but one that needs to be secure!  "But He said to me,  'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.'  Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may reside in me."  2 Corinthians 12:9

OBSERVATION

Romans 8:35-39  "Who can separate us from the love of Christ?  Can affliction or anguish or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?  As it is written, 'Because of You we are being put to death all day long; we are counted as sheep to be slaughtered.'  No, in all these things we are more than victorious through Him who loved us.  For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will have the power to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord!" 

Oh, don't you love this passage?  How reassuring these words are to us - no matter where we are, what is going on in our lives or what has gone on in our lives, we can K-N-O-W that God's love is available to us!

Look at all the possibilities of suffering that Paul lists:  affliction, anguish, persecution, famine, nakedness, danger, sword...all different ways that the Christians of his time were undergoing difficulty.  And why?  Because of Jesus - because they were holding true to His name.  But Paul reassures them that through all of this, they will come out victorious; no, actually he says, "more than victorious" or as the NASB translates, "we overwhelmingly conquer."  

Quoting from the book, "Paul didn't merely survive his sufferings; he lived victoriously in the midst of difficult circumstances."   Isn't that what we want to do?  We don't want to just make it through, there's a sense of joy in victory, isn't there?  There's no bitterness, no wallowing in self-pity  - we're coming through life with all of it's uncertainties and hard times as true champions --- and all because of God's great love for us that enables us to persevere.  That love that we can have confidence in, no matter what, is there for us as believers in Jesus Christ.  WE ARE LOVED - nothing can change that, and when the hard times come, that is what we cling to; when the enemy throws the dart of doubt at us telling us that we shouldn't have to be going through whatever it is that we are going through, we say, "I AM STILL LOVED!  Nothing can separate me from the love of my God, my Father,"  

                                                    

OBSERVATION:

We need to be convinced of God's love for us prior to hard times so we can be 100% secure in it when those hard times come, and they will, in this broken world they are inevitable.  Say it now and say it often, "God loves me and nothing, nothing, NOTHING, can change that!"

WEEK TWO WRAP UP:

So the question this week was  what is the purpose(s) of suffering in a believer's life and in what different ways can we suffer?   Did we find purpose of suffering in the life of a believer?  In looking back over the days studies, I think we found several purposes:

I see that the threat of suffering can serve as a filter in the body of believers, the church, allowing the faithful to remain and for the body to be stronger than before.

I see that suffering can define our purpose in the Kingdom and make our role clearer than before.

I see that difficulties that are truly more than we can bear, force us to trust our God in a greater and more desperate way - "desperate dependence" - creating a deeper relationship of greater intimacy.

I see that difficulties and suffering expose our weakness in contrast to God's immense power.  We cannot, but He can and He does and He will make a way when there seems to be no way.  We rely on Him.

And through it all I see that God's love is not just something that I can be assured of when times are beautiful and rosy and all is well in my world; I can be just as assured of it when things are dark, dismal and oppressive.  God's love is not conditional on my circumstances; He has not withdrawn His love when things get tough.  His love abides - ALWAYS!  

Suffering can seem like punishment, but God uses difficulties and suffering to grow those who believe in Him - to mature us - to make us more like Christ.  When we trust in Him, we will not only get through our hard times, we will finish the race victoriously, as champions, with great big smiles on our faces!

In His Amazing Love,

Janice

Week Two - Observation 4

Monday - again!  They seem to roll around on a regular basis, don't they?  But it's been a good Monday for us at the Hodges' house.  Robert has felt better than average today and spent quite a bit of time at his desk - a place he really enjoys being.  Robert has always been very detailed and methodical.  He likes making sure everything is entered correctly and up-to-date.  So he was in his element today and feeling more like himself than he has the last several days --- that makes it a good day for both of us!  Thank You, Lord, for good days of ordinary pleasures that sometimes seem very extraordinary.

Does anyone else feel that very soon we may be viewing lots of things like that?  Things that we have for so long taken for granted may become things that we will view as extraordinarily special? I think we are in for changes - I just pray that they don't come too quickly or too drastically.  What changes do you see coming in our future?  Or do you think I'm being a little overly dramatic in my assessment - because I can be that person!  :)

We left off on Friday talking about our weakness compared against our great and wonderful Father's immense power, and how we need to not only acknowledge that difference, but rejoice in it and praise God for His ability to compensate for our inabilities.  We will boast and brag about how very weak we are, because our weakness allows us to show off our God's love for us and that love put into action on our behalf, rescuing us from scenarios that have looked, from human standpoints, unrescuable.

Remember, our question this week is going to be:  What is the purpose(s) of suffering in a believer's life and in what different ways can we suffer?

And our verse to memorize this week will be one that we probably already have a jump start on, but one that needs to be secure!  "But He said to me,  'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.'  Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may reside in me."  2 Corinthians 12:9

OBSERVATION

2 Corinthians 7:5-7  "In fact, when we came into Macedonia, we had no rest.  Instead, we were afflicted in every way: struggles on the outside, fears inside.  But God, who comforts the humble, comforted us by the coming of Titus, and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort he received from you.  He announced to us your deep longing, your sorrow, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced even more."

Philippians 1:12-14  "Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has actually resulted in the advancement of the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard, and to everyone else, that my imprisonment is for Christ.  Most of the brothers in the Lord have gained confidence from my imprisonment and dare even more to speak the message fearlessly."

Paul really wants the Corinthians to know of his sufferings, doesn't he?  Now he's telling them about what happened in Macedonia - we've already seen where he's told them about his troubles in Philippi, Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra - he wants them to know he has suhhhhhh-ferrred! 

Paul's purpose in continually telling them about his suffering was to also continually tell them about God's provision.  Here he says there were exhausted - worn out.  They had struggles on the outside, fears on the inside - something inside me wants to sing, "stuck in the middle with you" - and I think that might be appropriate.  Have you ever felt like Paul is describing?  All kinds of conflicts and problems swirling around you, and all kinds of doubts and fears rolling inside of you.  And what we have is God - right smack dab stuck in the middle of all of it!  God right there, ready to comfort the humble - in some translations the "depressed".  When we're suffering without and within and we bare our hearts before God, He is our source of comfort, and He knows what we need.  In Paul's case, God knew he needed his friend Titus.  And not only the presence of Titus, but the words that Titus brought to him of the care and concern that the people of Corinth had for Paul in all of his troubles.  And Paul was spiritually discerning enough to recognize that Titus' arrival was no coincidence, it was a sent by God in Paul's time of need.  Paul could feel the love of His Father in the gifting of His comfort.

In Philippians, Paul wants his Christian family there to be aware of the positive side of his imprisonment.  (Now that's looking for the silver lining!  I'm not quite sure if I was sitting in prison that I would be dwelling on the upside!)  Paul realizes that his being held in prison has allowed the Gospel to advance in a way that it would never have been able to otherwise.  Now, the whole imperial guard has heard the story of Jesus Christ and His redemptive work on behalf of sinners.  And added to that, Paul realizes that when other Christians ready to speak out for Christ have heard of his courage in his imprisonment, it has emboldened them to follow his example and speak out fearlessly in the advancement of the Gospel.  Isn't it true that when we know others have endured something that we would normally fear, it gives us that added boost of confidence that we, too, might be able to do the same? 


So, my observations on this Monday evening?  I think first, I realize that suffering can reveal to us God's great love for us, His knowledge of our needs, and His incredible provision of just the right comfort.  And then there's the fact that suffering can bring avenues of ministry that we would not have had otherwise.  Whatever suffering we are going through, we are generally exposed to a different group of people than our norm - those very people may be who we are to share the treasure of the Gospel with during our time of suffering.  And lastly, our suffering may encourage others who may have to go through the same thing - knowing that we made it, that we endured, that we even showed courage in the midst of suffering - may be just want they need to keep going and to have confidence that they can also stand strong.

Oh the joys of suffering!  I'm not saying that lightly - it's just as James exhorts us in James 1:2-4:

"Consider it a great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. But endurance must do its complete work, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing."

I know that's our goal - to be mature and complete in our faith.  Let's not despise the tool that can get us there.  We will face trials no matter what; let's let God use them for our spiritual good.

Praying for each of you tonight as I pray for me to have the humility and submission to allow God to guide me in His best ways through all the days of my life - both those of joy and those of difficulty.

In His Amazing Love,


Janice

Week Two - Observation 3

Thanks for all the encouragement regarding yesterday's post - it's good to know that your thoughts are appreciated by others.  When I ask for your comments, though, it's because I know your thoughts are every bit as important as mine.  God speaks to us in different ways, but always with the same truths.  Sometimes one person may have a perspective that, when shared, allows another to see the deeper meaning in a passage - that's a great thing about group Bible study.  And during this time that we aren't as able to physically sit together and discuss Scripture, we can utilize the tools of our age and do the next best thing...and I kinda think this is it!  :)

I'm getting a later start tonight, and I don't like doing that.  My thoughts seem scattered and all of the day's activities are weighing on my mind.  Robert had a hard morning, so it seemed the whole day kind of got a little out of whack, timing wise.  But now I'm sitting quietly sipping my cup of peppermint tea, with my Bible beside me and knowing that I'm "talking" with friends, and I'm breathing in peace, and calm, and Holy Spirit joy.  That Holy Spirit joy that we discussed several days ago that allows us to persevere, and not only to just keep going, but to do it with the inner joy that only God can bring to us.  And He brings it saying He loves us, He knows us, He knows just what we're going through right now, and He's right beside us.  How can we not smile just a little bit when the Holy Spirit reassures us of all of that?

Remember, our question this week is going to be:  What is the purpose(s) of suffering in a believer's life and in what different ways can we suffer?

And our verse to memorize this week will be one that we probably already have a jump start on, but one that needs to be secure!  "But He said to me,  'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.'  Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may reside in me."  2 Corinthians 12:9

                                            

OBSERVATION

2 Corinthians 4:7-11 "Now we have this treasure in clay jars, so that this extraordinary power may be from God and not from us.  We are pressured in every way but not crushed; we are perplexed but not in despair; we are persecuted but not abandoned; we are struck down but not destroyed.  We always carry the death of Jesus in our body, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.  For we who live are always given over to death because of Jesus, so that Jesus' life may also be revealed in our mortal flesh."

2 Corinthians 11:30 "If boasting is necessary, I will boast about my weaknesses."

2 Corinthians 12:9-10  "But He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.'  Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may reside in me."

Where we left off yesterday with the realization that God allows us to suffer at times so we can see that  is our only hope, our only rescuer...we pick up today with more affirmations by Paul to us of God's great abilities contrasted against our profound weakness.

We really do live this life in clay jars, earthen vessels, easily broken and not meant to last.  These bodies die and decay.  I think it's sometimes a wonder that our current average lifespan is close to 80 years when you consider all of the many things that can go wrong in these bodies of ours.  Scientists estimate that our bodies contain 30 trillion cells.  It seems to me that the possibilities of those cells malfunctioning and going randomly crazy would be pretty high, but yet most of us live a fairly long time in these clay jars of ours.  Eventually, though, those cells do wear out, go rogue on us, and we die.  

We are not super beings, we are not powerful beings, and yet God deposited His great treasure, the Gospel, the ministry of reconciliation between God and man, within us.  Just as Paul reminded Timothy, "Guard, through the Holy Spirit who lives in us, that good thing entrusted to you."  2 Timothy 1:14. We have been entrusted by God with His message - we've been given a great responsibility.  But Paul reminds us that God knows exactly how weak we are, and that because of our weakness, God exhibits His power in ensuring that His message is successfully proclaimed.  Paul then compares the human response to their sufferings to the God-empowered response:

They were troubled, afflicted, pressed down upon, pressured - and yet they were not crushed, they did not feel constrained or troubled in spirit.

They were perplexed, confused, and didn't know what to do - and yet they were not in despair or without hope, they did not give up.

They were persecuted, harassed, beaten - and yet they never felt forsaken or alone.

They were struck down, humiliated, scorned - and yet they knew they were not destroyed, they knew they were not defeated and they knew God was not through with them.

These men were not superheroes, but God was acting in them supernaturally.  Paul wants to make sure we know this.  It was all God giving them power that was not theirs.  They were using their clay jars to show that their suffering, their very real human suffering, reflected Christ's; but that His life was shining through them in a miraculous display of ability to withstand and keep moving forward.  

That's why Paul was so eager to boast about his weakness - his weakness, in light of his great accomplishments for the cause of Christ, showed the power of God to accomplish what He wills to be accomplished.  We just have to be willing to allow our clay jar to be used by God - He will supply all the power necessary.  

Our cracked (sinful) clay jars are still usable by a God who restores all things for His use.  His grace - His all-sufficient grace seals our cracks, and makes us ready to be filled with His message.  Then we can take that message wherever He leads us, He will give us whatever we need to face whatever obstacles may come our way.  I am weak, but He is strong --- brag about that!  Brag about the fact that we are nothing, but He uses us anyway and makes up for all of our nothingness with all of His great everything-ness!  It is all God - He does it - we are just the jar carrying the message.  

So today's observation is this, from my perspective:  Suffering shows us just how weak we are, but how very, very great our God is.  Everything we lack, He gives.  Everything we aren't, He is.  We can live in His power and not crack wide open when the world expects us to, or even when we might expect to!  Live in His grace, live in His power --- let us be like Paul and brag about Him!

Week Two - Observation 2

For us here in the panhandle of Texas, any day that it rains is a good day!  So today was a good day - a nice, warm afternoon shower brought much needed moisture and it was so nice to sit on the patio watching the rain come down.  Add to that, three of our granddaughters were sitting on the patio with us, so that made today a very good day. 

When talking about difficult times, it's hard to see what is happening to our world today and not project these difficult times into the future years when our children and grandchildren will be living through them.  I cannot imagine that the world will suddenly "get better" over the next decades and evolve into a kinder, more loving place.  I see how our world has changed over the last twenty to thirty years and I don' see it as a better place now - much to the opposite.  The world of 1990 seems so mild in comparison.  I worry about the future for our children/grandchildren/great-grandchildren --- but then I'm reminded, this is all in God's hands---now, during our difficult times---and then, with whatever is to come.  I pray that God will come to gather up His children sooner than later --- but that, too, is in His omnipotent, all-knowing, loving hands. 

In thinking about our lives, wouldn't it be nice if they came with chapter headings?  I turned to our Scripture of today and my Bible contains the heading,"Difficult Times Ahead."  Wouldn't it have been nice to have flipped the page in our life book to January 1, 2020, and read, "Difficult Times Ahead."  Think we could have braced ourselves a little bit?  Well let's start bracing now, because I'm pretty sure that difficult times still lie ahead for all of us - no matter the world situation, we will all experience difficult times ahead in one form or another.  

Remember, our question this week is going to be:  What is the purpose(s) of suffering in a believer's life and in what different ways can we suffer?

And our verse to memorize this week will be one that we probably already have a jump start on, but one that needs to be secure!  "But He said to me,  'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.'  Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may reside in me."  2 Corinthians 12:9

OBSERVATION

2 Timothy 3:10-12 " But you have followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, and endurance,along with the persecutions and sufferings that came to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra.  What persecutions I endured!  Yet the Lord rescued me from them all.  In fact, all those who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted."

2 Corinthians 1:8-9  "For we don't want you to be unaware, brothers, of our affliction that took place in the province of Asia; we were completely overwhelmed---beyond our strength---so that we even despaired of life.  However, we personally had a death sentence within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead."

Today we're going to look at some of the "adventures" of Paul and Timothy, his protege.  Their adventures were not tales of fun and frolic.   In looking at our first passage Paul reminds Timothy of everything that Timothy had been hearing about Paul's travels - and about Paul's sufferings.  But Paul is quick to point out that he's still here and that was due to God's rescue of him.  

In the second passage, Paul is relaying to the Corinthians what he and his now fellow sufferer for the cause, Timothy, have been through - they thought they were going to die!  But, once again, God came to their rescue and they have lived to tell their story of deliverance.

Just as God made clear to Paul that he would suffer, Paul, in turn, made very clear to Timothy that if he joined Paul on his mission crusades, his life would not be easy - but it would be purposeful and victorious.  He restates that if you're going to live for Christ, you will be persecuted.  

I remember reading 2 Corinthians 1:8-9 when I really heard for the first time what it was saying, and it wasn't, "God won't ever give you more than you can bear." (Not in the Bible, by the way!)  It WAS specifically saying that at times God WILL give you much more than you can bear, so that you will be overwhelmed, beyond your own strength, even convinced that you're going to die.  

I have learned to look for the "so that"s in the Bible.  They are always telling us why something happened and what purpose it accomplished.  Here Paul tells us, "so that, we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead.

God put them in this precarious, life-threatening situation that they could do nothing about, that they had no power over and no escape from, SO THAT they would learn not to trust in themselves, not to think that they could always figure the answer out, not to lean on their own understanding...but, SO THAT they would learn to absolutely trust God...if He raises the dead, He can handle everything else as well, can't He?

                                                     

That's our observation for today:  in life's difficulties, we have to trust God, our God who has the power to raise the dead...and not ourselves for even a minute.  The God who created the universe is asking us to trust Him more than we trust ourselves --- why would we even argue with that?  Isn't He able to do infinitely more than we could ever come up with?

God may give you more than you can bear, just SO THAT you will realize this very thing --- you can trust Him!  He will come to your rescue.  He will make a way when it looks like, to our very human eyes, there isn't a way.  You may be very surprised at how and when He does it - but He will.  And that's the faith part...faith in Him to do what He has promised.

Isaiah 41:10 "Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with My righteous right hand."

Psalm 71:2 "In Your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; Incline Your ear to me and save me."

Week Two - Observation 1

This week we're going to take a broad look at the life of Paul and how his life portrayed one of suffering, but also of victory.  We're going to see how God really did use all things for good, even when they looked very, very bad.  Paul is an example to us of how we can live through very difficult times and keep our zeal, our joy, and our focus on God's purposes, no matter the circumstances we find ourselves in.

Our question this week is going to be:  What is the purpose(s) of suffering in a believer's life and in what different ways can we suffer?

And our verse to memorize this week will be one that we probably already have a jump start on, but one that needs to be secure!  "But He said to me,  'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.'  Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may reside in me."  2 Corinthians 12:9

OBSERVATION

Acts 9:15-16 "But the Lord said to him, 'Go! For this man is My chosen instrument to carry My name before Gentiles, kings, and the sons of Israel.  I will certainly show him how much he must suffer for My name!'"

Acts 13:44-45, 49-50  "The following Sabbath almost the whole town assembled to hear the message of the Lord.  But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to oppose what Paul was saying by insulting him."

"So the message of the Lord spread through the whole region.  But the Jews incited the religious women of high standing and the leading men of the city.  They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and expelled them from their district."
                                                
Few of us get such a clear directive of the purpose of our life as Paul did.  God clearly chose him to be a bearer of the good news of the Gospel to the Gentiles, to nobility and also to the Jews.  Paul, without a doubt, knew what he was destined to do once God got a hold of him in Damascus.

                                                    

                                                  

But God showed Paul something else right up front as well...He showed him the great amount of suffering that lied ahead of him.  Why do you think God showed him this up front?  Wouldn't that deter a lot of us from going forward?  I think that's exactly why God showed him - fair warning - you know what you're getting into here, are you really in?  Suffering can be a winnowing tool, can't it?

Paul  did know what he would go through for the sake of Christ, and he chose God's path and never looked back.  Would you or I do the same?  If God showed us that we would undergo beatings, stonings and finally decapitation, would we choose to keep speaking the Good News, never stopping no matter how many times imprisoned? 

Paul knew his Lord, he knew his purpose, and he knew where his true home was....I think that's what kept him going.

And Paul preached - and he gathered great crowds!  And he gathered opposition.

Paul preached - and the message spread throughout the whole area!  And enemies spread too.

Jesus told us we would be hated just as He was.  We are wrong to anticipate that when we speak of Jesus, everyone will open their hearts and receive our words with joy!  That is what we pray for, but that is not always going to happen.  Don't expect everyone to receive the Word gladly - expect opposition.  Expect to be put down and ridiculed.  Expect hard times.  Name one apostle that didn't encounter opposition over and over until they died.  

Now I'm not saying that we are living lives equivalent in importance to the Apostles...or could it be?  Could it be that we are being called to PROCLAIM Christ to a dying world as this dying world comes to its end?  What more important time could we have been appointed to?  I think it's time to preach - it's time to be Pauls and Peters and James and Johns to this 2020 world!  It's time to look suffering in its face and set our faces toward heaven and tell God, "Yes!" just as Paul did.  How we do that is going to look different for each of us, but let's pray to God for His direction in our lives so that we can bring Him glory!

My observations today:

1.  Knowing and being dedicated to our God-given purpose can diminish the threat of suffering.

2.  Suffering, or even the threat of suffering, can filter out those who are not truly dedicated to God's purpose in their life.

3.  Expect opposition - expect ridicule - expect rejection.

4.  Pray for God to show us His direction for our lives in this critical time of the world clock!