Growing Through Adversity Ruth 1:19-22 / James 1:1-12

This sermon is about how to go through and grow through the painful seasons of life.

God Allows Pain for a Purpose.

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials… James 1:2-12 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials…

James 1:2-12 “Brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.”

“Dear brothers, is your life full of difficulties and temptations? James 1:2-12 “Dear brothers, is your life full of difficulties and temptations? Then be happy, for when the way is rough, you have a chance to grow spiritually.”

Some believe that the greater our sorrow on earth, the greater our capacity for joy in Heaven.

II. For What Purpose.

II. For What Purpose. To Get our Attention

II. For What Purpose. To Remind us of our Weaknesses

II. For What Purpose. Most often it is IN our brokenness that God most uses us.

“And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be upon thy heart.” Deuteronomy 6:6

II. For What Purpose. To Increase our Hatred of Sin

II. For What Purpose. For our Spiritual Growth

The faith that can’t be shaken is the faith that has been shaken.

When it was easy to be a Jew, people stopped being Jewish. “People stayed Jewish. When it was easy to be a Jew, people stopped being Jewish. Globally, this is the major Jewish problem of our time.“ Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Future Tense: Jews, Judaism, and Israel in the Twenty-first Century (Schocken Books, 2009), page 51

“The cares of the world and the delight in riches, and the desire for other things enter in and choke the word and it proves unfruitful.” Mark 4:19

Golf Balls

Golf Balls It takes some rough spots in your life to enable you to go farther in your walk of faith.

II. For What Purpose. To Equip us to Help Others

III. How Will We Respond to His Purpose in our Lives?

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.

III. How Will We Respond to His Purpose in our Lives?

III. How Will We Respond to His Purpose in our Lives? True spiritual surrender is far from passive— it is a willful act of obedience. Jamie Aten, "Spiritual Advice for Surviving Cancer and Other Disasters," The Washington Post (8-9-16)

III. How Will We Respond to His Purpose in our Lives? "A setback is simply a setup for a comeback” ― T.D. Jakes, Bishop of The Potter's House Megachurch