Three Truths About Troubles - Trials

[0:00] The Real Life The Real Life The Real Life The Real Life Tonight I want to talk about realities, realities and about keeping it real, about real life and real living, real Christian living.

[0:18] ! Nobody likes a faith, do they? A counterfeit, a hypocrite. We want the real, we want the real thing and ideally we as God's people, we're the real deal. We're real Christians, we're real.

[0:29] How can we keep it real? In the world that we live in, the rubber hits the road, when things go bad, when we all strike those bumps in the road and we know it's tough going.

[0:40] In real life, the bad days, the hard times. And as a pastor I get to hear all the horror stories. All the horror stories. And I don't need to kind of discount that or make it seem like it's a joke because it is real for people.

[0:57] The horror stories of life. I hear when people are going through some tough, tough times. Really tough times. Now there's people that have contacted me lately that were telling me how they're weeping on their pillow because of the tough things that are going on right now.

[1:11] Right now. Right now. For them. It's very, very real. It's raw, it's real and it's hard. Hard going. Real life. I get to hear all about it. The devastation in people's lives. The distress. The hardship. The suffering. And the disheartenment. That's the real world isn't it?

[1:29] Yep. It is the real world. Some of you have been in harder places than me. Through your lives. I know there's people been through a near death car accident. And just got through. Only just. I think it could have been a lot worse. Hit by not one but two cars. Amen.

[1:46] And live to tell a story. You know. This is the hard real life isn't it? Where the rubber hits the road. Where the car hits the head. On the road. That's the real world isn't it? Amen. It's the world. It's the sin sick world. The sin cursed world. Where the realities of life can be hard going. It can be hard pressed. And even Christians can get sour. Bitter. And twisted. It's real. It's the real world.

[2:15] And it happens to Christians to get twisted up and torn and shredded. And feel like we've been through hell. And Christians can get really sour and hurt. The salt can lose it safer as it were.

[2:33] Where we feel like. Wow. My Christian life is. I don't have much of a weakness. Because it's. I'm just so torn up inside. And we get the root of bitterness the Bible talks about. Springing up. And sometimes we need to get the zero out. Amen.

[2:48] When that root of bitterness springs up. Get the zero out. The weed killer. As it were. When things come up. And the bitterness of life. It's hence the kind of crown. And encroach like a weed does. And wrap us around like. Boganvillea. You know.

[3:03] We've got to get the hacksaw out. And the weed killer out. Because. It's a big ugly plant. If we don't deal with that thing. Called bitterness. So how can we find joy. In tough times. It's not always easy. It's easy to make. It's probably a lot easier for us.

[3:18] for me to preach about it. But. When you're living here. It's. It's real isn't it. It's real for you. It's real for me. Our family. How can we find victorious living. In the real world. When. People can get badly injured.

[3:33] Badly injured. Hurt by fellow Christians. Never. Fellow Christians wouldn't hurt me. It happens. It happens. It's real. That's the real world. Hurt by fellow Christians.

[3:45] And they can shed real tears. When these things happen. People can carry baggage. From long ago. You know. Oh there's that chip on my shoulder. You know. Or whatever it be.

[3:57] That weight. That drags us down. The old abuse. The wounds. Deep scars. It hurts. That baggage. It can happen. Can't it. It can identify with that. It's real. People undergo difficult and distressing.

[4:13] Hurtful times. Hurting. It's brutal. Out there. Real life. The real battles. Who knows what's going to face you. When you get out that door. Wow. Tomorrow morning. What's going to hit you. You know. Hopefully not one of those cars.

[4:31] Barry. You know. What's going to hit you next. Go help us. The real battles of life. That's what we're talking about. And the word talks about that. That life can be hard. And we're not making a joke of it.

[4:44] Although sometimes it helps to kind of think. Yeah. Things could be worse. I could be hit by a car. But we think of suffering. Of sickness. Of grief. Of loss. Of hurts. Of addictions. Of temptations.

[4:56] Of marriage breakdowns. Of what could go wrong next. And pain is inevitable in life. Isn't it? Because we're living in a fallen world. And the reality is that when we face such things.

[5:09] We can find hope. There is hope. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Whilst you might still feel like you're in the tunnel. And it might be a while. But there is light at the end of the tunnel. And we see how. We see through life.

[5:23] Even in nature. We see the mother eagle. What does she do? She makes that nest really uncomfortable for a while. And then she gives that prod with her beak or claws.

[5:33] And the little baby eagle falls out. And hopefully learns how to fly. As the mother eagle has to force the baby to fly. To teach it how to fly. She has to force it out of the nest.

[5:47] And sometimes that's a bit like how God, I guess, gets us out of our comfort zone. That he's maybe growing us. There's something some of us saying before about growing. Isn't it? Life's a growth experience. We're always growing and learning.

[5:59] And pain and suffering can help us to grow that character. To shape that character. To get through those things that face us. And we see people who survive. The survivors.

[6:10] After world wars. And prisoner of war camps. And persecution of all kinds. They are often the people who've got that strength of character. There's something about them. They've been there. They've done the hard yards.

[6:22] They've been through the ringer. And made it through the other side. And there's something that distinguishes them from others. Because of that something harder of life that they've been through.

[6:33] And they've got through it. Gold is refined by the fire. Which heats it until the impurities come out. And suffering can help us re-evaluate things.

[6:44] And get back to what really matters. What really counts. And it helps us develop an internal perspective. Three score year and ten. Maybe a few extra if you're lucky.

[6:55] And you know, 70 years. And then, poof, you're gone. Life is a vapor, isn't it? That's what the Bible says. It's just like something blowing through your front yard.

[7:06] And it's gone. That's life. And we want to make the most of it. And sometimes, those things that bog us down. And twist us up. And hurt us. And are hard things.

[7:19] It's just momentary. In the scheme of things. In the eternal dimension. Now here's what someone said about when God wants to make a man. Likewise, you could say when God wants to make a woman.

[7:31] But this is worded. When God wants to make a man. When God wants to make a man. When God wants to drill a man. And thrill a man. And skill a man.

[7:41] When God wants to mould a man. To play the noblest part. When he yearns with all his heart to create so great and bold a man. That all the world shall be amazed.

[7:52] Watch his methods. Watch his ways. How ruthlessly he perfects. Whom he royally elects. How he hammers him. And hurts him. And with the mighty blows converts him.

[8:04] Into trials of shapes of clay. Which only God understands. While his tortured heart is crying. And he lifts beseeching hands. How he bends but never breaks.

[8:15] When he's good he undertakes. How he uses whom he chooses. And with every purpose fuses him. By every act induces him. To try his splendour out.

[8:25] God knows what he's about. Now. He hammers and hurts. He shapes like a potter at the wheel. That clay that he moulds and makes that vessel.

[8:38] That is precious and beautiful. But it hurts for the time. As it were for the clay. In that moulding, shaking time. And it's like that in life too.

[8:48] Sometimes the trials are the making of us. Isn't that true? As we look back and think. As it says in the Bible. Ebenezer. Which means hitherto. Hath God helped us.

[8:58] Like. It's a. It's a kind of marker in the ground. It's a memorial stone. I can say. Looking back now. At this point. Looking back. God has helped me. He's helped me through. God has helped me through.

[9:11] And the good news is. That God solves real life problems. With. Life. He knows. How to help us with life. He's the author of it. After all.

[9:21] And so. Here's some three truths I'll put to you. How we can find three truths that can help us in trouble. Three truths that we can find in trouble.

[9:33] So. Firstly. Number one. We learn to know God's presence when we're in trouble. God's presence is with us. Yes. All the time. But even more telling is his presence in trouble.

[9:45] We see that we can bring every need to our Lord in prayer. The Bible says that we can come boldly. Boldly. To the throne of grace. Where God's grace is.

[9:56] We can come boldly there. Without fear or trepidation or worry. Or feeling like he's not going to accept us. We're accepted it says in the beloved.

[10:07] If you're in Christ. He accepts you. And we can come boldly. Right to the very centre of the holy of holies. Into the very presence of God. And we can overcome guilt and shame.

[10:18] Because of the presence of God. He loves you. And he saved you. By his mercy and grace. And so our Lord is with us. He is your Lord. Your Master.

[10:28] You are his. And he is yours. And we can develop that heavenly perspective. When we travel through life's journeys. When we travel through the valleys. Especially the valleys.

[10:40] Despite the adversity. And the tragedy. Psalm 23. It says verse 4. Of course the whole Psalm 23. Is just a beautiful Psalm.

[10:52] That shows us the Lord is our shepherd. And verse 4. It tells us of the valleys. It says. And the Psalmist says. Yea. Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death.

[11:03] I will fear no evil. Why? For thou art with me. Thy rod and thy star. They comfort me. So we are going through.

[11:14] With the shepherd. Amen. Amen. With the shepherd. Down through the gully. Down through the valley. Down in the darkest. Deepest ravine. And he is there with us. Even in the valley of the shadow of death.

[11:27] Now. We all. Ultimately. We will all face death. Of a loved one. A family member. A friend. And it's a valley.

[11:38] Isn't it? A hard. Deep. Dark valley. But God is with us. Even though I walk through the valley. And the Lord has delivered you. In the past. He will keep you.

[11:49] As we look back. Through life. God is with me. He was with me. And he will be with me. And we learn to trust him. Now Job 2. It tells the account of Job.

[12:01] This man who suffered. Had great loss. And great grief. And hardship. Physical pain. And suffering. Agony.

[12:13] And Job 2. He just lost everything. At the time. And his wife says. Curse God and die. Pack it in. Throw it in. Give up. Kill yourself. Curse God and die.

[12:28] It's over. Give up. Throw it in. And what? He says. Verse 10. 2 of 10. 10 of 2.

[12:39] Job 2. 10. What? Shall we receive good? At the hand of God. And shall we not receive evil? In all this. Did not Job sin with his lips? He gives.

[12:50] He takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. That was Job's attitude. Whatever it is through life. He gives. He takes away. I'm going to bless his name anyway.

[13:01] No matter what. God. And that's the kind of attitude. Because God's presence with this Job. Even in that dark time. And God blessed him as we saw through the end of Job.

[13:12] He was returned what he'd lost in effect. So we see with the men and women of faith. Of Hebrews 11. The chapter in the Bible.

[13:23] Of the hall of faith if you like. The heroes of faith. The heroes of Hebrews 11. Men and women. Who were praised of God.

[13:34] To say these were men and women. Who God used mightily. And are recognised in a special way. In Hebrews 11. And we see God's delivering power.

[13:45] But even in the latter part of Hebrews chapter 11. It talks about the hardship. That they went through. And God commended that.

[13:55] Their faithfulness through. Incredible suffering. They were mocked. Flogged. Stoned to death. Imagine being killed by stones.

[14:06] No. Gruesome. Cut in half. This is what the Bible tells us. These were the saints. The men and women of God. Of faith. They were cut in half.

[14:17] Mistreated. Or forced to live as outcasts. You know. Sent out into the wilderness. And treated so despitefully. But God had not left them. He was with them.

[14:28] He was with them in the valley. They weren't living the great prosperous life. Your best life now. But Hebrews 11 says they were the men and women of faith. And God had not left them.

[14:38] But they would see eternal reward. So we can learn to trust God in our pain. Even if he doesn't deliver us from our pain. Because God's presence is with us. And it says in 2 Corinthians 4.17.

[14:50] Paul says. For our light affliction. Now Paul knew light affliction. He was at risk of death. And multiple times in near drowning.

[15:01] And suffering. Dranked out of the city. Half dead. He suffered excruciating difficulty. And pain. And imprisonment. Privation. He says.

[15:11] Our light affliction. Yeah. Worketh for us an exceeding. A far more exceeding. An eternal weight of glory. He had that perspective of the glory. Of God's glory.

[15:22] Of being with our Lord. And Paul expressed a time. When everyone forsook him. He was feeling very alone. Who's ever felt alone? Amen. It happens doesn't it? Life is like that.

[15:34] We can feel very very alone. In 2 Timothy 4. Paul was feeling very very alone. He says. Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me. And strengthened me. Here he was in a prison cell.

[15:44] He said. The Lord stood with me. And the Lord strengthened me. And he goes on. I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion. And the Lord shall deliver me. From every evil work.

[15:55] And will preserve me. Unto his heavenly kingdom. So him be glory. Forever and ever. Amen. Here's what some old time preacher said.

[16:08] To think of pain. And this was a preacher. He knew pain. He was a preacher. In old time England. He was mightily used with God.

[16:19] But he knew pain. And he said this. I the preacher of this hour. Beg to bear my witness. That the worst days I have ever had. Have turned out.

[16:29] To be my best days. And when God had seemed most cruel to me. He has then been most kind. If there is anything in this world. For which I would bless him more.

[16:40] Than for anything else. It is for pain and affliction. I am sure that in these things. The richest tenderest love. Has been manifested to me. Our father's wagons rumble most heavily.

[16:53] When they are bringing us. The richest freight. Of the bullion. Of his grace. Love letters from heaven. Are often sent. In black edged envelopes. The cloud that is black.

[17:04] With horror. Is big with mercy. Fear not the storm. It brings healing in its wings. And when Jesus is with you. In the vessel. The tempest only hastens.

[17:14] The ship. To its desired haven. You know the disciples in the vessel. In that stormy sea. Christ was with them. And he was there. His presence. He never left.

[17:25] And likewise. We can bless him. Even. Though it seems. Counter intuitive. It seems. Like it's the odd thing to do. We can bless him. Even in. Our pain.

[17:36] Even when things are tough for us. We can trust him. Why? Because we are not alone. You are not alone. Even when you feel. You are alone. You are not alone. Because.

[17:47] He says. I am. With. You. Hallelujah. I will. Never. Leave you. Nor. Forsake you. Glory. And he says. My grace is. Sufficient.

[17:58] For you. Sometimes we think. Oh. I have got to have. Some sign. Or some. Some. Something tangible. Something. To hang on to. Some. Blessing.

[18:09] That. I can see with my eyes. But he says. Even though we have got a thorn. In our flesh. Was the context of 2 Corinthians 12. And. Paul sought the Lord.

[18:20] Three times. And the Lord says. No. I am not going to take it from you. That thorn. Whatever it was. And he says. But. My. Grace. Is. Sufficient. Amen.

[18:31] So. Be encouraged today. You are not alone. Christ is enough. He is sufficient. He is all in all. He is everything. All. All. All that we need. We need nothing more.

[18:42] And we can say like Job said. Though. He. Slay me. Amen. Yet. Will I trust him. Yet. Will I trust in him.

[18:54] That's Job 13 verse 15. Though he slay me. Even though he kill me. Yet. Will I trust in him. And. You have his grace. You have his grace. His grace is.

[19:05] What? The sufficient. For the. His indwelling Holy Spirit. His power. His word. His presence. Number one. And we learn also.

[19:16] Number two. We learn. In suffering times. We learn to know. God's praise. He gives us songs in the. Night. Yeah.

[19:26] In those darkest times. David could find. Joy. He could say this in Psalm 16 verse 11. Thou wilt show me. The path of life.

[19:38] In thy presence is. Fullness of joy. At thy right hand. Are pleasures. Forevermore. He could find joy. Even in. Those. Difficult days.

[19:49] That. In his presence. Which never leaves us. Nor forsakes us. Is fullness of joy. Fullness of joy. Now we know. A story told of. A certain Romanian pastor.

[20:01] He's well known. He's written some various books. And for. 14 years. This man. A pastor from Romania. 14 years. He was locked away in prison.

[20:12] For what reason? For simply preaching the gospel. He was simply. A visible. Christian. He was one of the ones. Who stuck his head above the trenches. When everybody else was.

[20:23] Hiding. He. Preached the gospel. He declared. The word of God. And. Although his captives. Has smashed. Four of his vertebrae. Imagine that.

[20:36] Walking around. Four broken. Ribs. Or whatever. The vertebrae. The back of your back. Isn't it? And they cut. Or burnt. 18 holes. In his body. Tortured. Regularly.

[20:48] Tortured. Inflicted. Inflicted with pain. He testified this. He said. Alone. In my cell. Cold. Hungry. And in rags. I dance for joy. Every night.

[20:58] Hallelujah. He knew joy. He knew. Praise. In that time. Of testing. And it goes on. During this time. He turned to a fellow prisoner. A man he had led.

[21:10] To the Lord. Before they were arrested. And he asked him. Have you any resentment against me? That I brought you to Christ. I brought you to Christ. And you're here with me. In this prison cell. And the man's response was.

[21:21] I have no words to express. My thankfulness. That you brought me. To the wonderful saviour. I would never have it. Another way. Hallelujah. He was glad. To be. A Christian.

[21:32] Even in. Privation. And persecution. And imprisonment. And torture. And these two men. Exemplify. The supernatural joy.

[21:43] It's joy beyond. Our experience. This is not joy. That comes to us. Because the band strikes up. A jazzy tune. And we all want to jazz and joy. And. Or the preacher says.

[21:54] Something that sounds a bit like. A. You know. A get well. Get rich. Kind of message. A prosperity gospel. Kind of message. That you know. This is your best life now.

[22:06] And everything's going to be rosy for you. Because you've become a Christian. And you've got to suddenly have. Lots of money in the bank. And be. All kinds of. All. Everything's going to be laid on. No. That's not. None of that.

[22:18] They experience joy. Unspeakable. And full of glory. Joy that's beyond our circumstance. Joy that doesn't matter what's in the bank. Even if it's in the red. It doesn't matter.

[22:28] Amen. Because. This is joy. Beyond. What. The world. Would count. As bringing us joy. Because we can rejoice.

[22:40] Even in a time. Of sadness. In Psalm 30. We read. Verse 10. Hear O Lord. And have mercy upon me Lord. Be thou my helper.

[22:51] Thou hast turned for me my. Mourning. M-O-U-R-N-I-N-G. As in. I've lost somebody. I'm suffering bereavement. One of my loved ones has passed away.

[23:03] I've lost. Someone I love. You've turned my mourning. Into. Dancing. Hallelujah. Then I've put on my sackcloth. Which was used for.

[23:14] When someone was. Expressing. Grief. Grief. And sadness. You've put off my sackcloth. You know. This rough. Cloth.

[23:25] That was showing that they were. Feeling pretty low. And you've girded me with gladness. To the end. That my glory. Shall. Sing praise to thee. And not be silent.

[23:36] O Lord. My God. I will give thanks unto thee. Forever. We've got reason to shout. Thank God. Amen. Reason to shout. We've got glad news.

[23:48] Great news. Good news. We are saved. He's saved us. He's taken us out. Of the devil's clutches. And made us his own children.

[23:59] He's broken the bars. That held us prisoner. And he's set us free. Given us new life. Life more abundant. He's given us a family to belong to.

[24:10] Brothers and sisters. Of different colours. And countries. And cultures. And God bless. His name. Bless his name. The glory that awaits us.

[24:21] Is beyond human terminology. We can't express that. This suffering. That is slight. And momentary. And temporary. Compared to eternal glory.

[24:31] There's no comparison. Is there? This slight. This momentary affliction. Momentary. Eternal glory. Puts it all in perspective. Just around the corner.

[24:42] Is glory. Glory. The Bible says that. The eye hath not seen. Nor hath the ear heard. Neither hath it entered into the heart of man. The things that God has prepared. For them that love him.

[24:53] And friends. We can learn to praise. In the darkness. In the night time. In the sad times. We can learn to worship. Like Job did. Job.

[25:04] If anyone had reason to moan and whinge. And have a pity party. Was Job. Wasn't it? Job. What did he choose to do? He chose to worship.

[25:16] He chose to worship. Hallelujah. In the midst of suffering. Job 1 verse 20. He just lost everything. Then it says that. Job arose. And wrecked his mantle. He tore his clothes.

[25:29] And he shaved his head. It was a sign. I'm not sure quite what the sign was. But it was some kind of commitment sign. And he fell down upon the ground. And he worshipped.

[25:39] It says. And he said. Naked came I out of my mother's womb. And naked shall I return there. The Lord gave. And the Lord hath taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.

[25:50] He fell upon the ground. And he worshipped. No we don't worship. Just because we feel like it. Amen. Isn't that right? Yeah. We don't have to feel like it.

[26:01] No. It's because we love him. We love him. Job didn't have probably. Much of a reason to worship. If it was about reasons to worship. But he worshipped.

[26:13] And here's what a commentator. This old time preacher. That I quoted before. He said about this passage. In Job 1. Oh dear friend. When my grief presses. Me to the very dust.

[26:23] Worship there. If that spot has come to be. Thy Gethsemane. Then present there. Thy strong crying and tears. Unto thy God. Remember David's words.

[26:34] Ye people. Pour out your hearts. But do not stop there. Finish the quotation. Ye people. Pour out your hearts. Before him. Turn the vessel upside down.

[26:47] It is a good thing to empty it. For this grief may ferment. Into something more sour. Turn the vessel upside down. And let every drop run out. He's talking about the vessel of grief.

[26:58] You know. The sadness. Pour it all out. And he speaks. What he's saying. He says. Let every drop run out. Let it be before the Lord. Ye people. Pour out your hearts. Before him. God is a refuge for us.

[27:11] He goes on. When you are bowed down. Beneath a heavy burden of sorrow. Then take to worshipping the Lord. And especially to that kind of worshipping. Which lies in the door in God. And making full surrender of yourself.

[27:23] To the divine will. Pour out your hearts. Before him. Pour it out. Now it's a good cathartic kind of thing. Isn't it? Just let it all out.

[27:33] Before God. Worship him. Worship him. And pour your heart out. Before him. As David could cry out his praise. From his experience. In Psalm 59. Verse 16.

[27:44] But I will sing of thy power. Yea I will sing aloud of thy mercy. In the morning. For there has been my defence. And my refuge. In the day of. My trouble.

[27:55] Yeah. That's a good one isn't it? Amen. Psalm 59. 16. Now there's many psalms here we're talking about tonight. And the book of Psalms is one to really get you. Get your hearts into.

[28:05] And read through. Take it to heart. Many encouraging verses there. Thou hast been my refuge. My defence. In the day of my trouble. Psalm 59.

[28:17] Psalm 59. 16. It's as if God is closer to us. In my day of trouble. And God is our refuge. Our strong defence. He calls us to worship. In the day of trouble. Psalm 50.

[28:27] Verse 15. There's a similar one. I'm talking about the day of trouble. Where the Lord says. And call upon me. In the day of trouble. I will deliver thee.

[28:38] And thou shalt glorify me. So. Wow. You might say. Preacher. You don't know what trouble I'm in. The day of trouble. Wow.

[28:48] I've had a week of it. A month of it. A year of it. But. God says. Call upon me. In the day of trouble. Amen. Psalm 50. Verse 15. That's real worship.

[28:59] Isn't it? That's being real. It's not dependent on our feelings. That's worship. When you're feeling beaten. And hopeless. And worthless. When you're feeling rejected. And hurting. You can. Still worship.

[29:09] Job did. Worship. For real. For real. Not pretend. Not put on. Not just because they play the music. Just so. It's real.

[29:21] It's been real. And our faith can be lived out. Lived in a real life world. You know. One preacher put it. Never underestimate the pain in the room. There's people here that are in this.

[29:33] Yeah. You're in it now. It's pain. It's real. It's raw. It hurts. And this preacher says. On only given Sunday. The odds are that. One person in your sanctuary. Is struggling with loss.

[29:44] Heartache. Rejection. Loneliness. Or failure. Chances of this are. 100%. Yeah. It's happening. Yeah. All of us. At one time. Maybe even at this time.

[29:55] Yeah. Are in that day of trouble. The reality of trouble. It's real. It's a daily reality. This is not just some theoretical thing. But friends. We can take heart. The pain has a purpose.

[30:06] God has a purpose. Here's what another preacher said. You'll have no test of faith. That will not fit you to be a blessing. If you are obedient to the Lord. I never had a trial. But when I got out to the deep river.

[30:18] I found some poor pilgrim on the bank. That I was able to help. By that very experience. You know. You might. You might have been through you. That time of trouble. Like a river. And got on the other side.

[30:28] But someone else who can help. Who needs you. Yeah. To be that confident to them. You know. Pass through the fire. And most of the Psalms were born in difficulty. There's times when they were doing it tough.

[30:41] Those Psalm writers. Most of the epistles. You know. Paul. They were written in prisons. Most of the great thoughts of the greatest thinkers of time. Had to pass through the fire. We think of Bunyan.

[30:52] Who wrote Pilgrim's Progress. Florence Nightingale. Was too ill to move from a bed. She reorganized the hospitals in England. And semi-paralyzed. And under the constant menace of apoplexy.

[31:05] Pasteur was tireless in his attack on disease. There's many others I could cite here. There's one man. His eyesight was so wretched. He could only score a few words on a manuscript. Yet God.

[31:16] Well. He was used to write 20 magnificent volumes of history. Sometimes the hardest of times. Bring out the best of us. And. It's through the fire.

[31:28] That we go. And we can rejoice. As Peter calls us to. When the fiery trials come. Because God can turn our pain into praise. He can help you through.

[31:40] And he'll give you that testimony. After your test. So grit your teeth if you must. And rejoice. Rejoice. And keep on rejoicing. Some talk about the perseverance of the saints.

[31:54] Our line to this is the preservation of God. Now we talked about God's presence. He's with you. We talked about God's praise.

[32:05] He can turn your problems into praise. And thirdly we see God's preserving. God's preserving.

[32:16] The third thing I'd like to point out tonight. Is God's preserving action. In the midst of trouble. Think of the good company that you're in.

[32:26] If you're in trouble tonight. And you know. I've been in trouble. And I probably will be in trouble again. And I'm always in trouble with Julie. But it's a. No. In trouble with the law.

[32:37] You know. You've got to watch my speed. On the speed. I want to. You know. We're always going to be in trouble. It's very easy to get in trouble. Isn't it? But. You're in good trumpeting when you're in trouble. When you're suffering. The patriarch Abraham was tested.

[32:49] Job. That ancient man of wealth. He was tested. He lost it all. Peter was tested. The early Christians were tested. You know. Many of the disciples. If not all of them.

[33:00] Went through great trouble and testing. Even at the loss of their lives. And we know. God preserves his people. He helps us through. To get through. What's going on for us.

[33:11] And we can know God's keeping. Now I know. I've read this one before. But it's. It's a touching one. I'd like to. To give it to you again. He never fails. He never fails.

[33:22] The soul. That trust in him. Though disappointments come. And hope burns dim. He never fails. Though trials surge. Like stormy seas around. Though testing fears.

[33:33] Like ambushed foes abound. Yet this my soul. With millions more has found. He never fails. He never fails. He never fails. The soul. That trusts in him.

[33:45] Though angry skies. With thundered clouds. Grow dim. And grim. He never fails. Though icy blasts. Life's fairest flowers lay low. Though earthly springs of joy.

[33:56] All cease to flow. Yet still tis true. With millions more I know. He never fails. He never fails. He never fails. The cup.

[34:06] The soul. That trusts in him. Though sorrows cut. Should overflow the brim. He never fails. Though oft the pilgrim way. Seeds rough and long. I yet shall stand. And meet yon white roads wrong.

[34:18] And there I'll sing. With millions more. This song. He never fails. He never fails. God allows trouble. But he is always in control.

[34:31] He always is. He's always there. And he's always in control. And the Bible says nothing can separate us from the love of God.

[34:42] If you know him. If you're loved by him. If you love him. Nothing can separate you from his love. Nothing at all. And suffering can only make us grow stronger and wiser.

[34:55] In Romans 8. We read that the spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit. That we are the children of God. And it says. If we suffer with him. We may also be glorified together.

[35:06] And Paul says. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time. Not worthy. Not worthy to be compared. With the glory. Which shall be revealed in us. Our preacher said.

[35:18] There is no university for a Christian. Like that of sorrow and trial. It's a university course isn't it? We're in the. We still. School of hard work. We get to graduate. But one day we will.

[35:29] And then one day we'll be promoted. Hallelujah. One day we'll get the graduation. We'll get to wear that funny hat. And the robes. And we'll get a big certificate. But one day we'll graduate from this life.

[35:41] With this life. And there's no university for the Christian. Like that of sorrow and trial. But in the meantime it's still a learning time isn't it? Yeah. That sense of suffering.

[35:52] That we can't always make sense of it. And sometimes the struggle is what we need. Here's what someone said. Just to illustrate this. That man found a cocoon of a moth. An emperor moth.

[36:03] And he took it home. To watch it emerge. This cocoon of the moth. And on one day a small opening appeared. And for several hours the moth struggled. But couldn't seem to force its body past a certain point.

[36:15] And deciding to do something. Deciding something was wrong. He took some scissors and he snipped the remaining bits of the cocoon. And the moth emerged easily. Its body large and swollen. The wings small and shriveled.

[36:27] And he expected that in a few hours the wings would spread out in their natural beauty. But they did not. Instead of developing into a creature free to fly. The moth spent its life dragging around.

[36:37] Its swollen body and shriveled wings. Because the constricting cocoon. And the struggle necessary to pass through. The tiny opening. Were God's way of forcing fluid from the body into the wings.

[36:50] The merciful snip that the man made. Was in reality cruel. Because sometimes the struggle is exactly what we need. Hallelujah. What we need. Sometimes the struggle is what we need.

[37:04] So meantime. Brother, sister, learn to be patient. To be patient. To hope. To be singing songs in the night. Because that's where our faith can shine the brightest.

[37:17] In the night. When everybody else is low and despairing. We can have songs in the night. Because we have a saviour. Who's beyond this world. And glory is around the corner.

[37:28] People of God. So how can we be real? Real. In the real world. How can we be real Christians before a watching world? When the world will watch us. And they'll notice when we don't always measure up.

[37:41] How can we build that real faith? It's by going through real life. It's developing that forbearance. It's going and keeping on going.

[37:53] No matter what. Because we trust in God's preserving. We develop some persevering. That can't go hand in hand. There's a persevering of the saints.

[38:06] As the sense of that we should be forbearing. And enduring. And going through the hard yanker of life. But God's preserving.

[38:17] Is that which maintains us. And keeps us. So in the meantime. There's a holy desperation that's called for. A holy dependence upon God. In Jeremiah 17. It says. Blessed is the man.

[38:28] That trusted in the Lord. And whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters. That spreadeth out her roots by the river. And shall not see. When he cometh. But her leaf shall be green.

[38:40] Shall not be careful in the year of drought. Neither shall cease from yielding fruit. It's saying there about the time of drought. About the tree planted. With the roots deep down. Green leaves.

[38:52] The freshness. Even in drought. The fruitfulness. Even in drought. And reflecting on this verse. The preacher said this. As.

[39:03] He's found four anchors. He says. Four anchors here. Four anchors for trial. He says. Number one. Saying. He brought me here. It is by his will. I am in this difficult place.

[39:15] And in that fact. I will rest. He brought me here. Number one. Number two. He will keep me here. In his love and grace. Give me grace to behave as his child. He will keep me here.

[39:27] Number three. That he will make the trial a blessing. Teaching me the lessons he intends for me to learn. And number four. In his good time. He can bring me out again. How and when.

[39:37] He knows. So in the meantime. Let me say. I am here. By God's appointment. In his keeping. Under his training. For his time. He is going to say me times up. When it is the next chapter.

[39:49] So like someone has said. We can trust him. And someone has said this. It is good for us to remember. That God is not an arsonist. He is a refiner.

[39:59] He is not just lighting fires. Because he wants to burn things. He is a refiner. He is putting us through the heat. He is putting us through that flame. So he is going to create. A vessel.

[40:10] Unto one. So let's keep it real. People of God. In the real life. Where the rubber really hits the road. And hopefully you don't get hit by a real car. When you are on the road.

[40:21] But people of God. Whatever happens. Whatever happens. It is more than just mere words. This is reality. Isn't it? The hardships of life. And you don't serve God.

[40:32] Because it is the popular thing to do. Because it is the easy thing to do. Because it is the right thing to do. It is the right thing to do. So let's learn to rest on him. Trust in him.

[40:44] Yield to his will. Whatever it be. We are nearly closing here. Just a couple more moments together. Another poetic kind of verses here.

[40:56] That kind of picture exactly what this is. That I am talking about. To yield to his will. Whatever that be. Whatever that be. God has not promised skies always blue.

[41:10] Flowers stream pathways all our life through. God has not promised sun without rain. Joy without sorrow. Peace without pain. But God has promised strength for the day.

[41:22] Rest for the labour. Light for the way. Grace for the trials. Help from above. Unfailing sympathy. Undying love. We want to always have blue skies.

[41:33] And easy freezing. Sometimes it is the half real world that we live in. That we walk in. And we can have that real trust in God. That real faith that goes the distance.

[41:45] That knows our saviour is in charge. We can rest in that. And we can develop convictions. And that real faith that can go through.

[41:58] No matter what. No matter what. As we get real with God. As our faith is real. Is it real faith? Have you put your trust in Christ? He's your only hope.

[42:09] The only saviour. You know. In some countries I could get locked up for saying that. We're talking about this morning. You know. That's real. There is only one.

[42:21] Only one saviour. Only one salvation. Only one God. Three in one. Father, Son, Holy Spirit. Christ came as the ultimate God man.

[42:35] In flesh. To take sin. The penalty. Amen. To pay for it fully. And extend free pardon. Thank you. If you will but receive.

[42:46] So. Friends. For the meantime. Our Lord says you're blessed. When you suffer. Well. How do you get your head around that one? I mean. That's what it actually says.

[42:57] Paul says in Romans 5. He says. Not only so. He's talking about testing things. He says. But we glory. In tribulations. We glory. We actually get some kind of buzz out of it.

[43:11] There's a glory. There's a joy. There's a jubilation. In tribulations. Knowing that tribulation work of patience. He's helping us have that enduring faith.

[43:21] That endurance that goes through. That tribulation and trouble make us endure. And make us hang on to God. Now we've got nothing else. Hang on to him. Hang on to him.

[43:33] And here's one closing little poem. I like these little poems. But bear with me. It kind of pictures it. If you just picture this. And grasp this. Kind of picturesque language.

[43:44] Out of the darkness. Just to close. Out of the darkness. Out of the dark. Forbidding soil. The pure white lilies grow. Out of the dark. Out of the dark. Out of the dark.

[43:55] And murky clouds. Descends the stainless snow. Out of the crawling. Earthbound worm. A butterfly is born. Out of the somber.

[44:06] Shrouded night. Behold. A golden morn. Out of the pain. And stress of life. The peace of God. Pours down. Out of the nails.

[44:17] The spear. The crown. The cross. Sorry. I'll say that again. Out of the nails. The spear. The cross. Redemption. And the crown. Christ's suffering.

[44:29] Makes our glory. Possible. Doesn't it? Yeah. Our forgiveness. Our salvation. And I urge you tonight. The Bible says we can't know.

[44:40] Peace with God. You might say. Preacher. I've been searching. And I can't find that peace. I've heard different religious people. Talk about religious things.

[44:51] But I've never found that peace. Within that peace with God. I want it. The Bible says we can know.

[45:01] Peace with God. Through our Lord Jesus Christ. It says that peace comes because of the pardon. That he extends to all who will trust him. If you'll but trust him.

[45:12] If you'll but call on his name. Say Lord Jesus. Thank you for dying on the cross. For my sin. Yeah. Rising again from the dead. I put my trust in you. I believe. I want to follow you.

[45:26] To be yours. To live for you. A simple prayer. Can change your eternal destiny. Amen. If you'll but trust him. Honestly.

[45:37] Truly. Real faith. Real faith that will go through. Real life. And he'll help you through. Why? Because his presence is there. Through the valley.

[45:48] Of the shadow. Of death. When's the next time I'm going to go through that valley? Preacher. I don't know. It could be soon. It could be soon.

[45:59] We know there's people. Getting through. There's death everywhere. Isn't there? In some countries more so. We know. Awful things going on. We know.

[46:10] And our brothers. In the world. In the happy beginning. There's a lot of suffering. In life. But his presence is with you. Even there. In the valley. His praise.

[46:21] You can know his praise. Such that. You can praise him. No matter what. It's not dependent on how good you feel. Or how bad you feel. That his praise endures.

[46:33] Songs in the night. Joy in the morning. His preservation. He'll keep you. Till the river.

[46:46] Washes out your feet. As it were. He'll keep you. Until. You cross. That final river. As it were. Yeah. He'll keep you.

[46:59] Till glory. He says. I will never leave you. Nor forsake you. He's not going to let you down. God doesn't quit on anyone. Amen. He doesn't quit on us.

[47:10] So let's trust him now. Let's pray. Lord. We thank you. Lord. In our last journey. There's heavy loads. And birds. We lay them down. At your feet. We praise even in pain.

[47:22] Lord. We praise even in prison. As it were. Knowing the bars. Are just momentary. It's how glory. It awaits us. Lord. We know. Peace.

[47:34] Beyond. Human comprehension. Is. Available now. And it's for a limited time only. Yet Lord. We know that this peace. Is available now. So each soul.

[47:44] That will put his trust in you. Pray if there's any here tonight. Yet to trust you. That they'll say. I want to trust you now. We'll have an opportunity.

[47:57] For anyone who wants to respond. To seek prayer. At the close of this meeting. Anyone who would like to. Settle eternity. Eternal issues tonight.

[48:09] Settle it. Tonight. Today. For time. And for eternity. Does anyone get to know. The saving grace of God. To know for sure that they're a Christian. There's opportunity today.

[48:20] Lord your God. And that Lord. We pray that each one. Would take that opportunity. We pray for every believer. There's real suffering here tonight. There's. There's real suffering in this room. And Lord.

[48:31] There's people going through hardship. And hardness. Physical affliction. Pain. Mental. Emotional. Pain. Lord.

[48:42] Help us Lord. To find. Your peace. In the midst of all of it. Lord. To find your presence. To know. The praise. And to know your preservation. That you'll help us through. Every step of life's journey.

[48:54] Until glory. We thank you Lord. Amen. Amen.