Faith in the Storm

As a follow-up to my last post, "Comeback Kids", I figured I'd share here some of what I shared at a recent men's retreat. Through the storms of life that our family has faced recently, God has taught me some pretty profound lessons. Here are some of them. This post will be fairly long, but if I had to cite the most significant lessons learned, they would be the last four (#s 17-20). Otherwise they aren't in any particular order, and any emphases in Scripture are mine:

1. People are capable of unspeakable sin. They can, and will, do things beyond our imagining. Ecc. 8:14, “There is a vanity that takes place on earth, that there are righteous people who are treated according to the conduct of the wicked, and there are wicked people who are treated according to the conduct of the righteous.”
2. Scripture never promises to protect us from suffering. In fact, it promises the opposite: we will suffer. It encourages perseverance. 2 Tim. 3:12-15, “Indeed, all who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But wicked people and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving others and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it, and how from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ.”
3. God allows human motives/sin to interfere with His will. He leaves us to our own devices.
4. You can’t control what others do, or what happens to you; you can only control what you do and how you respond. People won’t always remember the details of your situation; but they will remember how you handled yourself.
5. Suffering is relative. No matter what you face, there are others whose situation is worse.
6. Suffering is necessary to be like Jesus. 1 Peter 4:12-13, 19, “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.”
7. We may feel completely alone or as if every other person has deserted us. But God never leaves us. No matter what we face, God faces it with us. We need to lean into Him completely. 2 Tim. 4:16-18, “At my first defense no one came to my support, but all deserted me. May it not be counted against them! But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion's mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and save me for his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever.”
8. Realize that we are not alone. Even when we feel isolated, there are godly people around us who we can lean on for support/encouragement. Hebrews 12:1, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
9. We answer to God. He is the ultimate judge. Ultimately, it doesn't matter what other people think. It matters what God knows. Jas 4:12, “There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy.
10. There is no power that is mightier than God. Mt. 10:28-31, “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows."
11. God is big enough for our anger, doubt, and frustration.
12. God is more than enough for us. We shouldn’t turn to other things to sustain us.
13. We must focus on the things of God, not on earthly things. Mt. 16:23, “But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things." Psalm 43, “Send forth your light and your truth, let them guide me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell. Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”
14. Facing challenges is no excuse for sin. In fact, the opposite is true. Mt. 18:18, “Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Psalm 4:4, “In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent.” Psalm 5:8, “Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies-- make straight your way before me.” 1 Peter 4:19, “Therefore, let those suffering in accordance with God's will entrust themselves to a faithful Creator, while continuing to do good.”
15. Forgiveness negates anger. It’s hard to hold on to anger when you have truly forgiven others.
16. Sometimes we must be willing to accept injustice for the sake of the gospel. Paul said that he would rather be wrongfully imprisoned than to stand in the way of someone coming to Jesus.
17. God is the only one who knows the end of the story. At times all we can do is wait and trust. Prov. 19:21, “Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails.” Jer. 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” We tend to focus on other words in this verse, but I read it with emphasis on the word I. God knows His plans for us, even when we don’t. And we don’t need to know them; we need to trust Him for the end of our story.
18. Complete faith and trust requires complete submission to the lordship of Christ. Jesus being our “Lord and Savior” are very different things. Knowing Jesus as Savior means we acknowledge that He is the Son of God, the Messiah. That’s simple belief. But truly making Jesus the Lord of our lives is a different thing entirely. It requires absolute submission to God’s authority and direction in our lives. Hebrews 12:9, “Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live!” James 4:7, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
19. Learn the lessons God has for you to learn through the challenges you face. While God doesn’t cause trials to come about just to teach us a lesson, He will use any trials we experience to stretch and grow us in our faith and in our relationship with Him. Be open to those lessons, even seek them out. Be willing to share those lessons with others. View your situation as an opportunity to minister to others.
20. Keep your eyes on Jesus. In Matthew 14, Jesus calls Peter to walk on the water. Yet when Peter saw the wind and (presumably) the waves, he started to fall in. When we allow our focus to be taken off Jesus, we fall. We need to keep our focus on Him, always. Hebrews 12:2-3, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”