Affliction Tag

October 12, 2008

Are You Being Torn by a Thorn?

Experts are saying this crisis affects the global economy—every nation. Do you think God is worried? Instead of listening to all the pundits and so-called experts, maybe we should listen to God’s Word written 3,000 years ago found in Psalm 2:1, “Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?” There’s plenty of raging going on, and there are more bailout plots and rescue plans than we can handle. But I love verse 4. It simply says, “The One enthroned in heaven laughs.” When we try to scramble around to fix a problem that is the symptom of the greedy, sinful human heart, God must surely chuckle. Maybe God is using this to remind us that happiness and security will never come in stocks, bonds, and possessions.

ReadListen
May 27, 2001

The Day Demons Performed a Swine Dive

I think we can make the mistake of trying to determine whether our problems are demon-induced or not. Remember, we saw the Bible never uses the term “demon possession.” We are all demonized in different ways. Any obsession, addiction, or impure habit is a demonic influence that must be addressed but you must admit it–name it–before you can deal with it. You can’t just shift the blame to some “demon,” because we are all ultimately responsible for all of our actions and reactions, but admitting your problem, naming the demon, is your first step toward wholeness with Jesus.

ReadListen
July 4, 1999

Stop Enduring Life and Start Enjoying It

Some people say, “When I get some of these problems in my life, that’s when I’ll rejoice, that’s when I’ll start enjoying life.” The only time you’re going to get rid of problems in your life is when you’re in a cemetery. In life trouble is inevitable, but misery is optional. Think about that. You have a choice about whether you are going to be miserable about the problems in your life, and the way you deal with it determines whether you are miserable or not.

ReadListen
June 21, 1999

God’s Prescription for Depression

If you are depressed or if you go through periods of depression, don’t worry because even some of the greatest saints of God in the Bible went through periods of depression. That’s where we find Elijah. Right after this great victory on Mt. Carmel we see him going through a time of depression.

ReadListen
March 21, 1993

How to Persevere Under Pressure

Smyrna was the center of emperor worship for the Roman Empire. If Romans had believed in Jesus, they would have put him up on a shelf in the Pantheon with all of their other gods: Jupiter, Zeus, Mercury, Mars, etc. But when Christians refused to name any other God than the one God of heaven they were called atheists and many of them were put to death. That’s the kind of setting in which they lived and that’s why Jesus said, “I know what you are going through.”

ReadListen
July 26, 1992

How to Keep Smiling During a Storm

Even though the apostle Paul was in prison, suffering, wishing he could be out preaching the gospel, he chose not to moan or complain. Instead he had an attitude of joy. Three things you can do to help you keep smiling during your storm.

ReadListen