Learning from Steve 3: Tough Times, episode 116

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If you love a prodigal, you can discover help and hope for your wilderness journey right

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here at When You Love a Prodigal, and also help and hope for your own life journey.

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Today we are continuing a month of episodes from my sweet husband, Steve, who moved to

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have an almost a year ago now.

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I believe his experience, wisdom, and relationship with God offers great help as we live with

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the tough circumstances, concerns, and responses that we face or have to take action on.

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Today I'm sharing with you an article he wrote on living through tough times.

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We know about tough times, don't we?

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I might make a few comments through it as I am reading to you what he wrote, but this

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is basically coming straight from Steve to you.

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He wrote this article in the midst of COVID, so it's coming at a time of some pretty tough

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experiences and challenges.

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So he wrote, in the midst of this shutdown, life seems so uncertain, even out of control.

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Perhaps you can identify.

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So what can you do when things seem out of control?

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I've asked that question, Steve, and God has reminded me what has strengthened me time

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after time.

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These three things about God really help me cope when I remember them.

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The first is that God is all-powerful.

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In Luke chapter 1 we understand that nothing is impossible with God.

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In Job 38, in God's response to Job, who was suffering a great deal, we find an overwhelming

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list of examples of his great power.

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For example, God asked Job, where were you when I laid the earth's foundation?

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And he said, do you send the lightning bolts on their way and tell them where to go?

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And many other things like that.

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Have you been to where the frost lives?

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And many examples, and God is saying, do you know what I know?

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He's all-powerful.

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He's in control.

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And along those lines, Steve says, I heard a story a while ago where the Jesus film team

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was about to show a showing in a rural remote area.

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And there was a rainstorm that was advancing, and it was going to arrive right as they were

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showing the film.

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And they prayed, and they said, Lord, can you stop this rainstorm so that we can show

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the film?

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And God did just that.

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He stopped the storm a very short distance from where they were doing the showing, but

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it was within view all of those who were watching the film.

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They could see that God himself had stopped it.

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So God is all-powerful, but he's also all-knowing.

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Psalm 139 is one of the classic biblical passages on how intricately God knows the details of

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people's lives.

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He says, before there is a word on my tongue, you know it completely, O Lord, in Psalm 139,

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we can't hide anything from God, and he doesn't fall asleep or forget about us.

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He knows about us, about the rest of the world, and about decisions that our loved ones might

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make.

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So God is all-powerful, and he's all-knowing, and this is really important.

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God is always loving.

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One of my favorite Psalms is 136.

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Steve wrote.

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Why?

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Because 26 times it repeats the refrain, his love endures forever.

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Does that just really touch your heart?

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His love never, ever goes away, and it won't.

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In John 3.16, that familiar verse, it says that God sent Jesus to die for our sins.

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Why?

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Because he so loved the world.

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I will never be able to thank God enough for forgiving my sins, and I'm very grateful for

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his many provisions.

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For example, during this time of being sheltered at home with Judy, me, Steve says, I am freshly

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reminded about how gracious and generous he has been to let me be married to her for 45

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years.

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Only it was 47 before he left for heaven.

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Remembering these facts about God that he is all-powerful, all-knowing, and always loving

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should lead us to the following responses.

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First, we can trust him.

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God alone is worthy of our total trust.

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He can and will implement his perfect will for our lives if we just trust him.

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In recent months, I and others in leadership in our ministry have had to face some significant

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challenges such as seeking to keep our staff around the world safe and praying for our

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finances to stay strong.

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On several occasions, I have sensed God saying to me, Steve, I've got this.

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Trust me.

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Notice that he was pointing out that the all-powerful God of the universe was handling this.

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I just needed to put my trust in him.

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As we ask God for protection, provision, restoration, we must trust that God will work

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his perfect will.

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It may well involve our ongoing prayer and action, but we need to come to the point where

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we really put our complete trust in him.

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So first our response is to trust and then to walk with him.

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Trust goes in proportion to relationship.

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If we don't talk to him much, he can seem a bit intangible and even distant, but if

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we talk to him as often as possible, we will be walking with him.

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In my daily life, as I engage in various interactions, thoughts, problems, I try to

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pray specifically about them.

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And as I am praying about those things, it really does seem like the peace of God that

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transcends all understanding guards my heart and my mind in Christ Jesus, especially need

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that peace in the middle of these current circumstances, or you need that peace in the

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middle of your current circumstances with your loved prodigal.

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So we trust, we walk with him, and then we cast our cares on him.

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That is what 1 Peter 5.7 invites us to do.

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Truly, putting our trust in God and not ourselves means we should cast our cares on him versus

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retaining them and think we can make this happen the way we want.

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About two months ago, Steve wrote, I had a memorable opportunity to do that.

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I had a second surgery on my scalp to be sure all of the melanoma skin cancer there had

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been removed.

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It took a week for the lab report to come back to indicate there was no more cancer.

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But during that week, I was able to cast that care on the Lord, waiting to hear and having

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peace because I knew I could have peace because I had casted that care on him.

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Changing circumstances can generate all sorts of cares.

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And when those cares arise, we need to remember that God can be trusted.

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We can give them to him.

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So as you face the difficult situations buffeting you and those you love, remember that God

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is all-powerful, all-knowing, and always loving so you can know that he alone can be completely

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trusted and as you walk closely with him, you can just give those cares to him and he

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is going to take care of them.

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So thank you, Steve, for some clear, simple guides for tough times which surely come when

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you love a prodigal.

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God is all-powerful.

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He knows it all.

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And he always loves us and our prodigals.

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So we can trust him as we walk with him and choose to cast our cares on him.

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What about you?

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What has helped you trust God in challenging times?

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Is there some trial, some challenge with you and your prodigal going on right now?

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That you need to give to the Lord?

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Next week we will wrap up these four sessions with Steve on practical helps for the challenges

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we face.

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Be sure to check out the show notes.

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We list some resources from Steve I think you will appreciate.

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God bless you.