Bible, Obedience, Faith, Choices, Hurt

When Life Gets Tough

We’ve all experienced those moments when it feels like everything in our lives is falling apart. We long for comfort, security, and immediate solutions. We want God to fix our problems and make everything better. And when it doesn’t happen, doubts and questions start to surface. But these are the moments where our faith is tested. In this video, we will see that God is not distant in hard times and that when we trust God in the midst of hardship, something incredible happens. God uses those hard times to shape us, to grow us, and to strengthen our faith.

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MESSAGE NOTES

[ 1 Samuel 19:11]

Then Saul sent troops to watch David’s house.They were told to kill David when he came out the next morning. But Michal, David’s wife, warned him, “If you don’t escape tonight, you will be dead by morning.”

 

[1 Samuel 20:33]

Then Saul hurled his spear at Jonathan, intending to kill him. So at last Jonathan realized that his father was really determined to kill David.

 

Are you willing to submit to God in the cave or only in the kingdom?

 

[1 Samuel 13:8-12]

Saul waited there seven days for Samuel, as Samuel had instructed him earlier, but Samuel still didn’t come. Saul realized that his troops were rapidly slipping away. So he demanded, “Bring me the burnt offering and the peace offerings!” And Saul sacrificed the burnt offering himself. Just as Saul was finishing with the burnt offering, Samuel arrived. Saul went out to meet and welcome him, but Samuel said, “What is this you have done?” Saul replied, “I saw my men scattering from me, and you didn’t arrive when you said you would, and the Philistines are at Micmash ready for battle. So I said, ‘The Philistines are ready to march against us at Gilgal, and I haven’t even asked for the Lord’s help!’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering myself before you came.”

 

[1 Samuel 13:13]

“How foolish! ”Samuel exclaimed. “You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you. Had you kept it, the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever.

 

[1 Samuel 15:15]

“It’s true that the army spared the best of the sheep, goats, and cattle,” Saul admitted. “But they are going to sacrifice them to the Lord your God. We have destroyed everything else.”

 

[1 Samuel 15:22-23]

But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the Lord: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice?Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols. So because you have rejected the command of the Lord, he has rejected you as king.”

 

[1 Samuel 24:3-4]

At the place where the road passes some sheep folds, Saul went into a cave to relieve himself. But as it happened, David and his men were hiding farther back in that very cave! “Now’s your opportunity!” David’s men whispered to him. “Today the Lord is telling you, ‘I will certainly put your enemy into your power, to do with as you wish.’” So David crept forward and cut off a piece of the hem of Saul’s robe.

 

David recognized the Kingdom was not his to take, it was God’s to give.

 

 

[1 Samuel 24:5-7, 10-12]

But then David’s conscience began bothering him because he had cut Saul’s robe. He said to his men, “The Lord forbid that I should do this to my lord the king. I shouldn’t attack the Lord’s anointed one, for the Lord himself has chosen him.” So David restrained his men and did not let them kill Saul. This very day you can see with your own eyes it isn’t true. For the Lord placed you at my mercy back there in the cave. Some of my men told me to kill you, but I spared you. For I said, ‘I will never harm the king—he is the Lord’s anointed one.’ Look, my father, at what I have in my hand. It is a piece of the hem of your robe! I cut it off, but I didn’t kill you. This proves that I am not trying to harm you and that I have not sinned against you, even though you have been hunting for me to kill me. “May the Lord judge between us. Perhaps the Lord will punish you for what you are trying to do to me, but I will never harm you.

 

[Matthew 26:37-39]

He took Peter and Zebedee’s two sons, James and John, and he became anguished and distressed. He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” He went on a little farther and bowed with his face to the ground, praying, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me…

 

[ Psalm 23 ]

The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.

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Application Questions

  1. What stood out to you from this message and why?
  2. What is one thing God is telling you to START doing because of this message?
  3. What is one thing God is telling you to STOP doing because of this message?
  4. How will this message change how you act at home, at work, and in your relationships?

We’ve all experienced those moments when it feels like everything in our lives is falling apart. We long for comfort, security, and immediate solutions. We want God to fix our problems and make everything better. And when it doesn’t happen, doubts and questions start to surface. But these are the moments where our faith is tested. In this video, we will see that God is not distant in hard times and that when we trust God in the midst of hardship, something incredible happens. God uses those hard times to shape us, to grow us, and to strengthen our faith.

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