How to Help Someone Find Hope and Healing, Part 1

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES Life's Healing Choices

How to Help Someone Find Hope and Healing, Part 1 By Rick Warren — Jun 21, 2015 “Therefore [Jesus] is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” (Hebrews 7:25 NIV) No one is outside Jesus’ reach. I believe that small groups are a vital part of helping so-called hopeless people find healing. One of the parts I like best about being in a small group is that you can pray for one another’s “hopeless” cases. We can lean upon the faith of others when we start to doubt. In Luke 5, a group of guys took their paralyzed friend to Jesus. It’s a great story of a small group of men who took someone in need of healing to the feet of Jesus. In this account, we find seven characteristics of a small group that God uses to heal. Today we’re going to look at three of those characteristics, and tomorrow we’ll look at the rest. Compassion: This man was healed because his friends cared. It all starts with us caring about people who are hurting. Romans 15:2 says, (NLT, second edition). God used these guys because they were sensitive to a friend’s need. And he’ll use us when we aren’t preoccupied with our own needs and start caring more about others than we do ourselves. Faith: The men believed God would heal their friend. Take a look at Luke 5:20: “When Jesus saw their faith, he said, ‘Friend, your sins are forgiven’” (NIV). It wasn’t the paralytic’s faith that made him well; it was the faith of his friends. How many people do you know who are so paralyzed they can’t believe in God? That’s when we have to believe for them. Intervention: These friends didn’t just pray for their friend; they took action as well. It’s not enough just to pray for someone who is hurting and caught in sin. We have to take action. Jesus says in Luke 14:23, “Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full.” There’s a slew of examples in the Bible of people taking others to Jesus. Everybody is not a soul winner, but everybody is a bringer. PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk It Over What does hopelessness look like? Do you believe that no one is outside Jesus’ reach? If so, what are you willing to do about bringing “hopeless” people to Jesus? What hurting friend have you been praying for? What can you do to take action and help that person heal? Our Gift: Life's Healing Choices Study Kit Can you think of a time in your life when you have been hurt by someone? How about when you hurt someone else? Or, a time when you hurt yourself? These moments happen to us all. Some of our deepest pains and anxieties come from refusing to let God heal us. Everybody needs healing from some sort of hurt, hang-up, or habit. That’s why Pastor Rick created the Life’s Healing Choices Study Kit to take you through the eight healing choices Jesus taught in the Beatitudes. The DVD and Study Guide include these eight- life changing sessions taught by Rick Warren. LEARN MORE Complete Audio Series (Purchase) Includes all complete sermons from the Rick Warren Life's Healing Choices teaching series. LEARN MORE Series Summary Message 1: The Reality Choice Message 2: ​The Hope You Need For Change Message 3: ​Letting Go and Letting God Message 4: ​The Housecleaning Choice Message 5: ​The Transformation Choice Message 6: The Relationship Choice Message 7: The Growth Choice Message 8: The Sharing Choice PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST

Pastor Rick Warren

Enjoy today's Devotional? Listen instantly to the full radio message at Daily Hope Radio. Did someone forward this devotional to you? Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional. This devotional is based on the current Daily Hope radio series at rickwarren.org. Rick Warren has helped people live with hope and on purpose for more than 40 years. He’s the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California and author of several books, including "The Purpose Driven Church" and "The Purpose Driven Life," read by more than 100 million people in 137 languages. He created the PEACE Plan (plant churches of reconciliation, equip servant leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, educate the next generation), which is used by churches in 196 countries. His radio teaching and daily devotional, Daily Hope, is offered across America. This devotional © 2015 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe at any time by changing your e-mail preferences. Update your preferences  |  Unsubscribe