How to Remain Faithful When Suffering

Current Teaching Series Daring Faith: The Key to Miracles

How to Remain Faithful When Suffering By Rick Warren — Jan 16, 2018 “Those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good” (1 Peter 4:19 NIV).  There are people out there who say God wants everybody to be a millionaire. There are some people who think following God is like having a golden ticket that guarantees you’ll be a millionaire, you’ll never get cancer, and you won’t have any problems in your life.  But the Bible says sometimes suffering is God’s will for your life. Why? Because it makes you more like Jesus. It deepens your faith. It brings you rewards in Heaven. It builds your character. It teaches you to worship instead of worry. There are three kinds of suffering in the world. Common suffering is suffering that’s universal — it doesn’t matter if you’re Baptist or Buddhist or Muslim or atheist or whatever. Everybody suffers certain things. When a hurricane comes into town, it doesn’t just pick on Christians. There is suffering in the world that we all share in common.  The second kind of suffering is carnal suffering. That’s suffering you bring on yourself from your own sin. If I choose to live an immoral life, one consequence could be a sexually transmitted disease. My choices led to that result, so it’s my fault. It’s not God’s fault. It’s not anybody else’s fault. Or if I spend more money than I make and go into debt and face bankruptcy, that’s my fault, too. I suffer because of my sin and bad decisions. Not all suffering is from sin. The Bible says sometimes suffering is according to the will of God, because God is more interested in your character than your comfort.  The Bible says in 1 Peter 4:19, “Those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good” (NIV). No matter what arrows are thrown at you, no matter what you suffer in this life because of your faith, God wants you to remain faithful to him and keep on doing good to others. Is that easy to do? Not always. Does it take faith? Definitely. Is it worth it? Absolutely, because God is guiding you to becoming more like Jesus.  PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>  Talk It Over How might doing good to others in the midst of your suffering help you change your focus? Where in your life do you need to stand up for Christ even in the face of opposition?

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Series Summary Session 1: What Happens When You Have Faith Session 2: How to Get Ready for a Miracle Session 3: Daring to Believe Session 4: Daring to Imagine Session 5: Daring to Give God My Best Session 6: Daring to Plant in Faith Session 7: Daring to Commit Session 8: Daring to be Generous Session 9: Daring to Wait on God Session 10: Daring to Go in Faith 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 pastorrick.com. 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, which has been translated into 137 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. 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 around the world. This devotional © 2018 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