suffering – herbcotton.org

Do You Have A Reliable Anchor?

Text:

Hebrews 10:23 (HCSB)

23 Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

Observation:

In this life you will have problems; you will have trouble. It’s the reality of living in this present world.

John 16:33 (HCSB)

33 I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.”

The dictionary says, “To be forewarned is forearmed. Knowledge in advance enables one to be prepared”.

Jesus warned His followers in the first century long before man came up with the english dictionary definition of our need to be prepared for trouble, and suffering in the world.

The crucified Jesus paid our sin debt; the resurrected Jesus provides us with the hope that our soul needs in a troubled, and sin sick world.

Galatians 2:20 (ESV)

20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Prayer:

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Father, our daily prayer is for the kingdom of our God to be advanced each day that we live; anchored by the resurrected Christ. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

—

Ephesians 6:10-11 (ESV)
¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

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Will My Troubles and Trials Ever Go Away?

Text:

Psalm 55:1-5 (ESV)

1 Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy!

2 Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan,

3 because of the noise of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked. For they drop trouble upon me, and in anger they bear a grudge against me.

4 My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen upon me.

5 Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me.

Observation:

In this Psalm David writes about the troubles and terror that he was facing in a season of his life. The troubles were from within, and without, but they both drained him of his peace, and his joy.

Psalm 55:6-8 (ESV)

6 And I say, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest;

7 yes, I would wander far away; I would lodge in the wilderness; Selah

8 I would hurry to find a shelter from the raging wind and tempest.”

When we find ourselves feeling like this, when we think will I ever get out of this pit. This is the time to be still, and remember who we are, and whose we are. It is time to connect with our Father in heaven.

Psalm 55:16-17 (ESV)

16 But I call to God, and the LORD will save me.

17 Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice.

Yes, there is nothing in this world that will satisfy our souls, and heal our wounded hearts like the presence of the Lord. That is why David writes this near the end of his Psalm, and you can claim this promise in your season of trouble, and pain.

Psalm 55:22 (ESV)

22 Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

The Apostle Peter draws upon this wisdom, and writes this encouragement to the first century believers, and it speaks to us today.

1 Peter 5:7 (ESV)

7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

Prayer:

Father, I exalt and give praise and honor to Your name; the name that I cherish above every name on earth below, and in heaven above.

Father, hear our cry; hear our plea as we cry out to You in prayer for others, and for ourselves. Father, we declare that our hope is in You, and that our help comes from You.

Father, we know that You can, and that You will hear our prayer. We watch, and wait for Your answer to our prayers. Amen.

—

Ephesians 6:10-11 (ESV)
¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

Read all the Daily Devotionals by Herb Cotton; click here:

http://herbcotton.blogspot.com/

How Do You Deal With Suffering?

Text:

Psalm 30:2-3 (KJV)

2 O LORD my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me.

3 O LORD, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave: thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.

Observation:

The questions that many are asking is, “Why Am I Suffering?” As we read the bible we see that all of the disciples suffered. They suffered, and many died a martyrs death. Even Jesus suffered, and died. A better question to ask is, “How do we suffer?”

The bible says this about our suffering.

2 Corinthians 1:3-5 (ESV)

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,

4 who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

5 For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.

In the season of our pain we should never forget that God is a good Father, and He cares for His children, and He has a great, and enduring love for us. We know that in everything God is working for our good.

Romans 8:28 (ESV)

28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

The response to our pain should be praise from our lips to God’s ears. That is what David did, and that is what we should do. No matter what you are going through, the best is yet to come. God has you in His heart, and in His hands. Don’t allow your suffering to make you bitter. God has better plans for you; so offer up some praise to Him. A song of gratitude will change your attitude.

Psalm 30:4 (ESV)

4 Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name.

Prayer:

Father God, we exalt You, and we extol, and give praise, honor, and glory to Your most holy and righteous name.

Father, with grateful hearts we say thank You for loving us with an everlasting love, and for doing for us what we could not do for ourselves. Father, we love You, and cling to Your presence in our lives both now, and forever. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

—

Isaiah 55:11 (KJV)
¹¹ So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

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The Path from Suffering to Glory

Text:

Psalm 22:1-5 (ESV)

1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?

2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest.

3 Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel.

4 In you our fathers trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them.

5 To you they cried and were rescued; in you they trusted and were not put to shame.

Observation:

The goodnews for the children of God is that we can see through the words of the prophetic the description of the suffering of Christ, and His glory foretold by David, who was a prophet of God.

Acts 2:29-31 (ESV)

29 “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.

30 Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne,

31 he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption.

Those of us who are Christ followers should not expect for the circumstances in a fallen world to ever be perfect. As a friend often reminds me when discussing the troubles of this world, Herb, this is the world, not heaven”. By the way, Jesus said this about the troubles of this world.

John 16:33 (ESV)

33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

As believers there is something we can do about the trouble, and darkness in the world today. Here is another word from the lips of Jesus.

Matthew 5:15-16 (ESV)

15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.

16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Prayer:

Father, hallowed be Your name. Father, help us to see the purpose in our troubles, and find peace in the glory that awaits us in our eternal dwelling place. Father, help us to remember these words.

2 Corinthians 5:7-8 (NLT)

7 For we live by believing and not by seeing.

8 Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.

In the precious, and royal name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

—

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Who Owns the Battle You Are Facing?

Text:

Psalm 9:1-4 (HCSB)

1 I will thank Yahweh with all my heart; I will declare all Your wonderful works.

2 I will rejoice and boast about You; I will sing about Your name, Most High.

3 When my enemies retreat, they stumble and perish before You.

4 For You have upheld my just cause; You are seated on Your throne as a righteous judge.

Observation:

This world is not a perfect place, and it can never be made perfect by man. Jesus told His disciples what they would be facing so that they would not be surprised when trouble comes.

John 16:33 (HCSB)

33 I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.”

The best way for the believer to live in this world is to live in Christ, walk in His will, and stay close to the Lord.

The secret to living the overcoming life in this fallen world is do the will of God, and praise and thank God with your whole heart. Our part is to be courageous, and trust in the Lord with our whole heart. The battle belongs to the Lord.

Psalm 9:4 (HCSB)

4 For You have upheld my just cause; You are seated on Your throne as a righteous judge.

Prayer:

Father, we give praise to You for You are righteous and just in all Your ways. Father, our hearts are filled with gratitude for Your wondrous works.

Psalm 40:5 (HCSB)

5 LORD my God, You have done many things— Your wonderful works and Your plans for us; none can compare with You. If I were to report and speak ?of them?, they are more than can be told.

Father, thank You for giving us perfect peace in the midst of our storm tossed lives. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

—

Hear the Daily Devotional by Herb Cotton; click here:

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The Source of Hope and Help for God’s People

Text:

Psalm 119:49-56 (ESV)

49 Remember your word to your servant, in which you have made me hope.

50 This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.

51 The insolent utterly deride me, but I do not turn away from your law.

52 When I think of your rules from of old, I take comfort, O LORD.

53 Hot indignation seizes me because of the wicked, who forsake your law.

54 Your statutes have been my songs in the house of my sojourning.

55 I remember your name in the night, O LORD, and keep your law.

56 This blessing has fallen to me, that I have kept your precepts.

Observation:

The word that leaped off the page and into my heart when I read today’s focal passage was suffering.

When you take your focus off of yourself, and fix your eyes upon others, you see the pain and the suffering that they are going through. However, sometimes that suffering is buried behind a wall that has been put up to shield them from the fiery darts of insensitive people.

The psalmist offers hope for all who are dealing with pain and suffering. The people of God are never without hope.

In our pain we should not abandon our praise of God, and our gratefulness to Him for His deliverance, and His present help that is just a prayer away. Think about and meditate upon these verses.

Psalm 119:50 (ESV)

50 This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.

Psalm 119:54-55 (ESV)

54 Your statutes have been my songs in the house of my sojourning.

55 I remember your name in the night, O LORD, and keep your law.

Remembering to praise God in our pain and suffering will lift our spirits, and bring hope and healing into our life. It was when the Psalmist changed his focus from his problems, and looked to the Lord that he found hope and help.

Why not take the upward look today in the midst of your circumstances that are masquerading as mission impossible? Our problems are God’s raw material for a miracle.

Psalm 121:1-2 (ESV)

1 I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?

2 My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.

Prayer:

Father, hallowed be Your name. Father, I pray that in the midst of our pain and suffering that we will remember that we can always look up, and give praise and thanksgiving to Your precious name.

Father, I am so grateful that Your ears are always attentive to the cries of Your people. Father, give us grateful and thankful hearts. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

—

Read the Daily Devotional by Herb Cotton; click here:

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Daily Bread

Title: Our Suffering Compared to Our Hope

Text:

Romans 8:18 (HCSB)
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is going to be revealed to us.

Observation:

I am so glad that as a child of God that our suffering does not define us or determine our destiny. Suffering do not negate the hope that we have in Jesus. Notice what Paul says about our suffering and our hope. When he considered, which is “to calculate, to reach a settled conclusion by reasoning and study” he came to this conclusion.

2 Corinthians 4:17 (HCSB)
For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory.

Paul is giving us a path to follow for overcoming the troubles that we encounter in this world. Jesus never promised that life would be easy, but he did promise this.

John 16:33 (HCSB)
I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.”

And the Apostle Paul reminds us to never forget this truth.

Romans 8:28 (HCSB)
We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose.

Let’s keep our focus in the place where it can do us the most good. Let’s keep our eyes upon Jesus, and His promises found in the Word of God.

Hebrews 12:2 (HCSB)
keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame and has sat down at the right hand of God’s throne.

John 14:1-3 (HCSB)
¹“Your heart must not be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me. ²In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if not, I would have told you. I am going away to prepare a place for you. ³If I go away and prepare a place for you, I will come back and receive you to Myself, so that where I am you may be also.

Prayer:

Father God, my dear Father, I am so grateful that You have not left us in this world to fight the battle alone. Father, You have provided us with a comforter and a helper; the Holy Spirit of God.

Father God, as we pray, watch and wait, help us to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. Father, as we consider our troubles and our hope help us to remember to look up to Jesus, and draw from within from the power of the Holy Spirit to keep on keeping on. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray, Amen.