2 Causing Our Own Problems Aug 19, 2012 Pastor/Teacher Curt Crist

Pastor/Teacher Curt Crist www.welcometograce.com Philippians 4:9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you. Paul was no stranger to adversity, to calamity, to distress, to stress. For that matter everywhere he went, they were right under his heels.We often say things like "Satan must be hard at work in my life given the turmoil I'm undergoing right now." I can guarantee you that Satan was working far more fervently in Paul's life than he is working in our lives today. Paul was God's initial conduit for the relaying of the gospel of Christ. Paul was the chosen spokesman for God to relay the information for this entire dispensation. Satan had far more reason to give it his all when it came to Paul. The question is how did Paul face adversity? His problems in life covered the board from finances, to friends, to physical infirmities, from enemies to personal calamities, Paul's life was a quandary, if not to God, certainly to the apostle Paul. Well, first of all, Paul assessed the situation. Paul made statements such as, "I have learned" and "I reckon." Paul reasoned things through; he assessed the situation. You're to access your situation. In Romans 8:18, Paul talked about "reckoning" in light of the sufferings of this present time." Reckon - logizomai - means "take an inventory," to "think on something" such that you can reason it out and come to a logical conclusion. Why would you need to reason out the source of the problem? Well, some problems can be resolved by the people who are faced with those problems some problems cannot. In other words, there are AVOIDABLE SUFFERING circumstances and there are UNAVOIDABLE SUFFERING circumstances that come our way. Avoidable suffering has to do with the choices we make in our lives. When we sow an inappropriate choice, we can count on the fact that sooner or later, we're going to be faced with an unfortunate circumstance. How does the Holy Spirit lead believers who have made unfortunate choices? That's simple begin sowing correct seed. Romans 12:10 "Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour (doing what?) preferring one another;" Romans 13:1: "Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers." 1 Timothy 5:8: "But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel." Example...Unless an employer is asking you to violate the Word of God, you're to be subject to the requirements of that employer simple as that. Or, look for another job while you continue to do a good job for the employer you currently have. Quitting a job while that job is the source of your or your family's sustenance is not an option. At least as far as the Holy Spirit's leading through Scripture is concerned when it comes to that problem. This is not rocket science, folks. You know most of the problems we face (at least the people problems that come our way) continue to be problems only as long we REFUSE to prefer others over self and we continue to insist upon our right to be positioned on the top shelf. Many problems come our way simply because of our insistence upon having our way. And that's the case whether it be on the job, in the home, whether it be with a spouse, with family members, or with friends. In such cases each of us hold the power to the resolution of our problem. How many problems would disappear if we could all conduct ourselves in a more Christ-like manner when it comes to the sacrifice of self in preferring others over self? Here's another area of leading to think about. How many believers do you suppose there are today who are living unfulfilled lives (not exactly the life they'd rather have) because they continue to hold a grudge against another individual and that grudge has been affecting that relationship whether that grudge be for a day or for years upon years?—A grudge from a past incident in life. How much pent-up anger do believers hold on to? Ephesians 4:32: "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath (already) forgiven you." Wow! Do you mean that I can't hang on to that resentment that I've felt for so long because of this or that that someone has done against me? A lot of problems persist in on-going relationships today, in marriages today because one party or the other continues to hang onto an injustice, or injustices committed by the other which ceased to occur long ago. Rather than wondering how the Holy Spirit is leading when it comes to many of our problems why not just apply the Holy Spirit's provided solution to avoid those problems? .