(2 Corinthians 1:8-11) We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia.
We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself.
Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.
He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers.
Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.
Surviving Life’s Worst Moments
The 6 Stages of Grief…
1. Shock.
(Ecclesiastes 4:9-10) Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
Sin broke the earth. Therefore, God sent Jesus on a rescue mission to rescue us. His purpose was to eternally rescue us from this place.
When we are in shock, we can't believe what has happened. We become disoriented. During these times, we can't trust ourselves.
It is not a sin to fall into shock, but it is bad to fall into it alone. When life falls apart, don't run from God and other people but to them.
2. Sorrow.
(Isaiah 53:3) He (Jesus)was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Jesus too was a man of sorrows. Jesus wept over the death of His friend Lazarus. But don't let sorrow take over your life. Jesus is the solid rock to build your life upon during sorrow.
(Psalm 61:1-2 NKJV) Hear my cry, O God; Attend to my prayer. From the end of the earth I will cry to You. When my heart is overwhelmed; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
I have a pre-planned worship mix for my unexpected times of sorrow. When I worship, it changes everything. It changes my perspective.
In the middle of sorrow, we must choose to worship. Don't trust your feelings in sorrow. They will lie to you.
3. Struggle.
(Matthew 27:46) “(Jesus speaking) My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Even Jesus felt trapped in His pain. When we doubt, we lose our perspective. Dwelling on the problem can lead to suicide. Every time you relive it. It comes back worse.
(Hebrews 11:35-40) There were others who were tortured… persecuted and mistreated— the world was not worthy of them.
They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground.
These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
If you know how it will end, it relieves the tension. There are those who feel like things didn't work out for them. Things don't always work out.
When life on earth falls apart, we must focus on our eternal life which is to come. In the light of eternity, this life is but a moment. We must keep our eyes on Jesus.
4. Surrender.
(Proverbs 3:5-6) Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
We may never fully understand it. This life cannot be done alone. Only with God's help can we do it. Trust is relying upon the reliability of someone else. We must trust on our God who is fully reliable.
5. Sanctification.
(Romans 5:3-4 MSG) We continue to shout our praise even when we're hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next.
God uses our loss to teach us a lesson. God doesn't do it to us, but He can use it if we'll let Him.
(1 Peter 1:6-7 NLT) So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine.
It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold.
So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
God uses our pain to develop our character. God will choose our character over our comfort any day.
We as parents do the same thing when we discipline our kids for their future.
Our pain is either a jail that imprisons us, or a school that shapes us.
6. Service.
(2 Corinthians 1:3-7) Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.
For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.
If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.
And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.
God wants our test to become our testimony. He wants our mess to become our message. God wants to use it to reach another person's life. In your pain, don't let your feelings run the show.
We can't control what happens to us, but with God's help, we can choose our response.
Chris Hodges, Church of the Highlands.
(
https://www.churchofthehighlands.com/media/message/surviving-lifes-worst-momentsChris Hodges, Church of the Highlands, pain, shock, struggles, tests, trials,
(2 Corinthians 1:8-11) We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia.
We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself.
Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.
He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers.
Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.
Surviving Life’s Worst Moments
The 6 Stages of Grief…
1. Shock.
(Ecclesiastes 4:9-10) Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
Sin broke the earth. Therefore, God sent Jesus on a rescue mission to rescue us. His purpose was to eternally rescue us from this place.
When we are in shock, we can't believe what has happened. We become disoriented. During these times, we can't trust ourselves.
It is not a sin to fall into shock, but it is bad to fall into it alone. When life falls apart, don't run from God and other people but to them.
2. Sorrow.
(Isaiah 53:3) He (Jesus)was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Jesus too was a man of sorrows. Jesus wept over the death of His friend Lazarus. But don't let sorrow take over your life. Jesus is the solid rock to build your life upon during sorrow.
(Psalm 61:1-2 NKJV) Hear my cry, O God; Attend to my prayer. From the end of the earth I will cry to You. When my heart is overwhelmed; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
I have a pre-planned worship mix for my unexpected times of sorrow. When I worship, it changes everything. It changes my perspective.
In the middle of sorrow, we must choose to worship. Don't trust your feelings in sorrow. They will lie to you.
3. Struggle.
(Matthew 27:46) “(Jesus speaking) My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Even Jesus felt trapped in His pain. When we doubt, we lose our perspective. Dwelling on the problem can lead to suicide. Every time you relive it. It comes back worse.
(Hebrews 11:35-40) There were others who were tortured… persecuted and mistreated— the world was not worthy of them.
They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground.
These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
If you know how it will end, it relieves the tension. There are those who feel like things didn't work out for them. Things don't always work out.
When life on earth falls apart, we must focus on our eternal life which is to come. In the light of eternity, this life is but a moment. We must keep our eyes on Jesus.
4. Surrender.
(Proverbs 3:5-6) Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
We may never fully understand it. This life cannot be done alone. Only with God's help can we do it. Trust is relying upon the reliability of someone else. We must trust on our God who is fully reliable.
5. Sanctification.
(Romans 5:3-4 MSG) We continue to shout our praise even when we're hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next.
God uses our loss to teach us a lesson. God doesn't do it to us, but He can use it if we'll let Him.
(1 Peter 1:6-7 NLT) So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine.
It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold.
So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
God uses our pain to develop our character. God will choose our character over our comfort any day.
We as parents do the same thing when we discipline our kids for their future.
Our pain is either a jail that imprisons us, or a school that shapes us.
6. Service.
(2 Corinthians 1:3-7) Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.
For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.
If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.
And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.
God wants our test to become our testimony. He wants our mess to become our message. God wants to use it to reach another person's life. In your pain, don't let your feelings run the show.
We can't control what happens to us, but with God's help, we can choose our response.
Chris Hodges, Church of the Highlands.
(
https://www.churchofthehighlands.com/media/message/surviving-lifes-worst-moments
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