8.26.8 "A Purpose in the Problem"

"A Purpose in the Problem"

Job 20:1-22:30
2 Corinthians 1:1-11
Psalm 40:11-17
Proverbs 22:2-4

Do you ever notice that sometimes God is trying to get a point across? The readings today from the One Year Bible share a theme.

Psalm 40:12 says, "... problems far to big for me to solve are piled higher than my head." Have you ever been there? Have you been in a situation where even for a moment you saw no hope? What is the natural reaction? Most of the time it is survival. "Lord, help me survive this." "How am I going to get through this?"

Notice the pronouns in those last two sentences: "me" "I". We tend to be so self focused that when trial comes our self is our only concern. But, is "getting through" and "survival" the proper response to the difficult situation? If the problem is "not about you", then what IS it about?

Proverbs 22:3 says, "A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences." Is it possible to prepare for every difficulty ahead? It isn't if your definition of preparing for the difficulty is to be able to avoid it.

For example, if I were to tell you that you were going to be going through a difficult time in the next month, what would you do? How would you prepare? You don't know what type of difficulty, you don't know if it's work, family, health or finances. You only know it's going to be a tough time. How can you be a "prudent man" about this and not a simpleton? The prudent man prepares... how can you prepare when you have no idea what's ahead?

The biggest step in preparing for problems is to come to full understanding that EVERY problem serves a purpose. In specific situations each different problem may have it's own unique challenges. Each will have those things that could be working out various character issues in you, or building your faith, or that type of thing, but there is a greater good that goes beyond what the problem is doing in you. Remember: It's not about you.

Let's see what Paul has to say about this in 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 "What a wonderful God we have - he is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the source of every mercy, and the one who so wonderfully comforts and strengthens us in our hardships and trials. And why does he do this? So that when others are troubled, needing our sympathy and encouragement, we can pass on to them this same help and comfort God has given us. You can be sure that the more we undergo sufferings for Christ, the more he will shower us with his comfort and encouragement." Paul makes this personal: "We are in deep trouble for bringing you God's comfort and salvation. But in our trouble God has comforted us - and this, too, to help you: to show you from our personal experience how God will tenderly comfort you when you undergo these same sufferings."

Are you beginning to see the purpose in the problems? It's far bigger than you realize. It's bigger than survival. It's bigger than the growth of your faith. Oh, yes, don't get me wrong. Growing in faith is a key element in all of this, but that so the larger purpose brings us back to our Mission: Reaching our World for Christ.

We have a mandate to approach each difficulty with an understanding that the problem is a necessary part of our learning process so we can train/teach/sympathize/encourage others. When you read a book, there's a difference between "just reading it" and reading it because you are about to teach it. When you're preparing to teach it, you make sure you understand it. We should take the same approach to the challenges of life. If face it with courage because we know we will need to comfort others in a like situation, it will give us momentum and purpose in what we're experiencing.

So, the Purpose in your Problem is to place you in a position of helping others. This puts quite a responsibility on you. You're no longer in survival mode. You now have to go through your trial marking the trail for others.

How do you prepare as "the prudent man"? By knowing the Word. Be Empowered through Biblical Training. Knowing God's character and his commands keeps you balanced and centered on principle and not on circumstance. If you say, "I've got this problem, and I'm going to go through it to teach others!" and you go through it in your own strength, without biblical principles guiding you, you can get off course. This is how false doctrine develops. God does a miracle a certain way in a certain circumstance, and an individual makes that their doctrine. They try to implement that in every trial that comes up.

This is what Job is talking about in Job 21:34 when he asks his friend Zophar: "How can you comfort me when your whole premise is so wrong?" His friend was building a case that was not built on principle. It was built on circumstance. Circumstances change. God doesn't. Knowing God can help in any trial.

Like David was saying at the beginning, sometimes these problems are "far to big for me to solve". That's kind of the point. Paul says in 2 Cor. 1:9 "We felt we were doomed to die and saw how powerless we were to help ourselves; but that was good, for then we put everything into the hands of God..."

The purpose of going through a problem is not so you can learn how to solve them. It's so you can learn how to put them in the hands of God, and then teach others to do the same.

It's important that we grow in balance as we mature in Christ. Today's DEVO contained every element of the DREAM:

Dynamic Lifestyle of Worship - Rejoicing through trial & frustration Ps 40:16 "But may the joy of the Lord be given to everyone who loves him and his salvation. May they constantly exclaim, "How great God is!"

Relationships Devoted to Unity - Our trials have the purpose of encouraging and building one another up.

Empowered through Biblical Training - the preparation mentioned in Proverbs, and Job

Active Ministry Involvement - the Responsibility we have to use the resource God has given us to serve others. - even when that resource is a battle scar!

Mission to Reach our World for Christ - That's what all this is about. Bringing others closer to Christ.

As you go through your day today, don't Live to learn, Live to teach!



Through the Power of the Spirit,
Live the DREAM!

P Greg


Dynamic Lifestyle of Worship
Relationships Devoted to Unity
Empowered Through Biblical Training
Active Ministry Involvement
Mission to Reach our World for Christ