Adverse circumstances are part of life. I wish they weren’t, but they are!
 
Adversity makes us feel anxious, wondering what is going to happen next. You and I can feel stuck or stalled in life when adversity comes knocking on our door.
 
But imagine a day like this.  
 
You get up, eat breakfast, brush your teeth, drive to work and do your job. Then people you care about mercilessly pummel you with rocks. Then they drag your severely battered, bruised and bloodied body into a ditch outside of the city.
 
Abused. Abandoned. Alone. Left to die.    
 
Most likely you and I will never experience a day like the one just described. But the apostle Paul of the Bible did. Our scripture passage for this week reveals a serious, adverse scenario that became life-threatening for God’s chosen servant.
 
“…. they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be dead. But while the disciples stood around him, he arose and entered the city.”  Acts 14:19-20
 

• Paul was stoned with rocks (not with wacky weed!). Big rocks. Hard rocks. Jagged rocks. Rocks that hurt. Why? Simply for preaching the Good News of Jesus Christ.

 
I am certain a physical beat-down with stones was not scheduled in the Apostles’ day-timer for that morning! So how did Paul respond to a stoning? Verse 20 states “he arose and entered the city”. Which city? The one where he had just been stoned!
 
Are you kidding me? Did you get hit with one rock too many brother Paul? Did you lose some of your marbles during the stoning? How in the world could you walk back into your adversary’s backyard? What in the world were you thinking?
 

• Left for dead, Paul plowed ahead with God’s purpose in His life.

 
Paul turned a stoning into a ministry opportunity. By the grace of God, he marched right back in to share the Rock of salvation with those who threw rocks and tossed him out of town.  
 

• Smack dab in the middle of serious personal adversity, Paul advanced.

 
 Persecution propelled him forward. Difficulty moved him to greater determination and diligence in his ministry of declaring and sharing the Good News!
 
Contrast the disciple’s response with Paul’s. They stood around. Hung out, probably sucking their thumbs and whining about their situation! Paralyzed by fear, troubled by the tribulation they had encountered, they retreated while Paul advanced. The disciples were more near death then Paul. Paul was wounded and traumatized in his body. But his ministry colleagues were troubled in their spirit.
 

• The disciples froze in adversity while Paul rose in adversity to bring glory to God.

 
As Christians you and I must come to grips with verse 22, “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.”  Note “many tribulations.” You and I must pass through them to enter God’s kingdom. This being true, we need to learn how to advance through adversity if we are to be victorious overcomers like Paul and our precious Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  
 
I believe it is entirely possible that Paul successfully endured a stoning because he personally witnessed Stephen’s stoning in Acts 8.  
 
Stephen’s courageous testimony of faith and subsequent martyrdom touched Paul’s heart. The apostle was inspired witnessing Stephen advance through adversity. In Acts 9, on the road to Damascus, Paul received Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Savior. The same spirit of Jesus that was in Stephen also resided in Paul.
 

• When times are tough, you and I can stand around like the disciples and do nothing, or we can rise up, take a faith stand, and do something positive and productive like Paul.

 
Advice For Advancing Through Adversity.
 

• Commit yourself completely to your calling.
• Take your eyes off your problems. Focus them on your purpose. 
• Remember that God, the Rock of salvation, is bigger than any rock-throwing adversary. 
• Resolve to move forward by faith when circumstances are pushing you backwards. 
• While others may retreat in the face of adversity, you choose to run to, not away, from the battle.
• Trust the Lord to turn an unpleasant experience into a good one. He is an expert at that!
• Ask yourself: How can I make lemonade out of these lemons?

 
Adversity is part of life. Christians are not exempt from tough times. So, when trials, tribulation, testing, challenges, difficult seasons and opposition raise their ugly heads, will you retreat or advance?
 

• Adverse life circumstances test  our fortitude, our determination, our commitment to advance during every season of uncertainty, confusion and concern. 

 

• Faith in Christ stands firm in times of adversity.

 
“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing; so that also at the revelation of His glory, you may rejoice with exultation.”                                         I Peter 4:12-13
 
“Therefore, take up the full armor of God that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.”                                            Ephesians 6:13
 
“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”  I Corinthians 15:5
 
A Word For Your Week: When the going gets tough, the tough advance through adversity to fulfill God’s will.
 

​Years ago I taught a married couple’s Sunday School class. With warm fondness, I remember how much fun we had together building our marriages and families studying God’s Word together.
 
A couple of the guys who were my best friends in the class liked to rag on the fact that I am short in physical stature (5’ 5 ½” inches to be exact!).  When I left to take my first church as pastor, the class threw a great going away party for me and Jo Ann.
 
Ø  My buddies wrote and then sang a little jingle that went something like this: “Steve Roll will be ten feet tall when he gets to heaven, but everyone else will be eleven!” Ragged me to the bitter end! Their tribute was awesome and made me try to walk a little taller!
 
Our scripture for the week showcases a momentous battle between a giant named Goliath and a shepherd boy named David. Read I Samuel 17.
 
Goliath was an uncircumcised Philistine phenom A mammoth, mountain-sized, menacing, muscle bound, meanness machine who openly taunted God and caused the Israeli army to tremble in their combat sandals. Goliath was nine feet tall and weighed 700 lbs!
           
Ø  Goliath was a real problem. A big problem.  HE SEEMED TOO BIG TO HIT.
 
I once heard John Maxwell say “Your problem is not your problem.” John shared how we can turn our problems over to God, and when our problems become His problems, He solves them for us.
 
Goliath was not Israel’s problem. Goliath was God’s problem. But Saul and Goliath made God’s problem their problem. In doing so, God’s warriors were stopped dead in their tracks by Goliath’s trash-talking taunts for forty days and nights.  
           
Ø  Goliath was big but not too big for God.
 
Saul and the Israeli army forgot who their God was and how big and bad (good bad!) He was.
 
Enter shepherd boy David. You will discover that David had a different perspective than Saul and the Israeli soldiers. He walked in faith, not fear.
 
“Then David said to the Philistine (Goliath), “You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have taunted.”
 I Samuel 17:45
 
Ø  David looked up at the colossal champion of Israel’s enemy and decided THIS GUY IS TOO BIG TO MISS! David could see that Goliath was nine feet tall.  But that did not bother David, for David knew that His God was at least ten feet tall!
 
Without hesitation, with a fire burning in his heart, and the Israeli and Philistine armies looking on, David publicly, boldly confessed his faith (verses 31-37), courageously confronted Goliath with confidence and certainty (verses 45-47), and conquered convincingly the giant in the name of the Lord (verses 48-53). 
 
Ø  Let me ask you: How big is your God? I mean how big is your God? Is He big enough to handle any problem you have?
 
Problems seem so big because, like Goliath, they stand tall, scream loudly, cast a scary shadow, instill fear and worry,  laugh and mock at our seeming insignificance.
           
Ø  Problems can become gigantic when we focus on them instead of God and our faith in Him. The more Goliath taunts us, our faith in our God either gets smaller or bigger!
 
Goliath looked big in front of a cowering army and a little, shepherd boy with a slingshot. But Goliath was cut down to size in a hurry through the faith of a courageous servant who attacked his enemy in the name of the Living God!  
 
Ø  It is a fact that you and I find out how big our God is and how much faith we have in Him when Goliath shows up. Goliaths test our trust in God.
 
Try this simple exercise the next time you have a Goliath problem. Take a piece of paper and draw a line down the middle. Put Goliath (your problem) on one side and God (your solution) on the other. Write out everything you know about Goliath and God, then decide who is bigger, God or Goliath. Who you decide is bigger determines the outcome of your situation.
 
Ø  The God of the Bible is bigger than any and every Goliath we may ever encounter in life.
 
My friend, Goliath better think twice when God’s kids are in town! Christians do not defeat problems in their name. We gain victory over the enemy because the battle is the Lord’s (verse 47), we fight by faith in the name of the Lord (verses 37, 45-46) and victory belongs to the Lord! (See Proverbs 21:31).
 
Ø  Got a problem? A giant problem! A Goliath taunting you and mocking your faith? Take your problem and put it in God’s hands. Remember that God is at least ten feet tall and He still slays nine foot Goliaths.  
 
“There is none like Thee, O Lord; Thou art great, and great is Thy name in might. Who would not fear Thee, O King of the nations? Indeed it is Thy due…...”  Jeremiah 10:7a
 
“Ah, Lord God! Behold, Thou hast made the heavens and the earth by thy great power and by Thine outstretched arm! NOTHING IS TOO DIFFICULT FOR THEE!”
                                                                                                                  Jeremiah 32:17
A Word For Your Week: God is always bigger than your biggest problem.
 
 

​Have you wondered why America is in a moral freefall?

• America: a morally declining culture due to compromising convictions.

In every corner of our great country, you and I witness blind-sighted, deceived people who are falling away from long-held, cherished, traditional values, moral principles, biblical beliefs and codes of personal and corporate conduct that everyday Americans have held near and dear for over 245 years.

• As a people, the United States is in a sad state of affairs concerning convictions.  

Unfortunately, and I say this with deep concern and heavy sorrow in my heart, the spirit of compromise has invaded, infected and is immobilizing the church.
There are some “ministers,” “fellowships” and “professing Christians,” who are in grave danger of falling away from the faith or have already turned their back on the Savior due to compromising convictions.  Culturally, politically correct theology and practice is crippling the advance of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
In the name of tolerance, acceptance and inclusion, which have been enshrined as sacred watchwords in our wayward society, even Christian people have strayed from truth. THE TRUTH. Jesus said what no other person has ever declared: “I am the way, the truth and the life; no man comes to the Father but through Me.” John 14:6.
Because Jesus is the only way to salvation and eternal life in heaven, why wouldn’t everyone want to turn to Him, not away from Him? How can it be that some would turn their back on the One who took stripes on His back to save them from sin, death, the grave and eternal damnation? Turning away from God’s Only Son is not a good thing to do.
The Bible addresses falling away from the faith. Unbelievably, especially in the “last days,” there will be many who deny the faith and turn away from Jesus.
“And at that time many will fall away and will deliver up one another and hate one another.” Matthew 24:10
“Make every effort to come to me soon; for Demas, having loved this present world, has deserted me…” II Timothy 4:9
“For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many a snare.” I Timothy 6:10
“For in the case of those who have been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance since they again crucify to themselves he Son of God, and put Him to open shame.” Hebrews 6:4-6.
Jesus, Paul, and the Hebrews writer make it clear: under pressure, some will fall away by forsaking the Christian faith. Their fall from faith will be great.
Think about the day you and I live in. Do you know supposed Christians who no longer confess Christ, who have dropped out of church, who are silent about Jesus, who are acting like the world, who have forsaken the Lord Himself?
Sadly, there are people falling away from Jesus all around you and me.
Factors That Contribute To Falling Away From Faith In Christ

• You no longer stand in awe, reverence, and fear of Almighty God. His sovereign holiness means little or nothing to you. It you think your Creator and Redeemer is just “the man upstairs,” or only “the good Lord,” or someone or something you turn to when in trouble, your faith is seriously shallow. Cultural Christianity is not biblical Christianity.
• A lukewarm heart. Revelation 3:14-22 declares God will spit out the lukewarm follower. A cold heart toward Jesus and the body of Christ is a spiritual red flag. Cold hearts and seared consciences are a sure sign of slipping faith.
• You are falling away if you believe there are many paths to God. Jesus said He is the only way. There is only one Cross and one resurrection from the dead. There are not multiple saviors. The world falsely hopes there are many highways to heaven. The Bible says there is only one.
• You may be falling away if you are not feeding and exercising your faith. If you are not reading your Bible, praying, attending church regularly, fellowshipping with fellow Christians, serving in the church and our culture, and when given opportunity to share your faith with others you do not know, be very careful.  A fall is closer than you think. (Hebrews 10:25).
• Worldly behavior. When you are talking and acting like those who do not believe in God, your faith will be eroded. What about what comes out of your mouth? Who do you spend time with? Who influences you most? Would those who know you best say you act like the unbelieving world? (I John 2:15-17).
• Compromising moral convictions. When worldly values supersede biblical truth and principles, a fall can be just around the corner. The world system, influenced and empowered by Satan, labors tirelessly to deceive you and me into believing that abortion is acceptable, sex outside of marriage is normal, homosexuality is natural, same sex marriage is approved by God, lying, cheating, stealing, and corruption is fine if you want to get ahead in a greed and power-based society.

 
None of these “positions,” as well as many others, represent biblical values in the Word of God. If you believe like the world, you are slipping down a slippery slope of unbelief.  

• You are disappointed with a life situation and blame God for it. Romans 10:11 declares “Whoever believes in Him, Jesus, will not be disappointed.” Deal with disappointment by turning to Jesus, not away from Him. Overcome adversity with faith in the Lord.

My brothers and sisters in Christ, there is no compromise when it comes to Christ’s Cross. The empty tomb demands that you and I decide with all our heart if Jesus is God’s Son or not.

• Are you completely convinced about what you believe and why you believe it? Would you lay down your life for your Christian convictions? Will you stand up for Jesus everyday of your life?

I end this blog with powerfully simple words from a historical hymn of the church.
“I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back.” “Though none go with me, still I will follow. No turning back, no turning back.”
How about you? If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, have you settled it that there is no turning back ever? Under all circumstances, will you stand for the Lord and His Word, keep the faith, and finish your course for Christ? (II Timothy 4:7-8). 
As for Steve Roll, I will never compromise my Christian convictions, character or conduct.
Take a moment right now to reaffirm your faith that Jesus is your life and you will never fall away from the faith.
A Word For Your Week: Never, never turn your back on the Lord Jesus Christ.

​I love new, don’t you? Of course you do!
New trumps old almost every time (antique/classic automobiles, magnificent Victorian style mansions, and fine vintage furniture excepted!).
There is nothing like the scent of a new car, the keys to a new house, the birth of a baby, a marriage ceremony sending the newlyweds off to a honeymoon, and, oh yes, one of my favorites, fresh, baked bread!
I met my wife Jo Ann in San Diego. Highway 74 is a major highway connecting downtown with Spring Valley, where Jo Ann lived. I logged a lot of miles on my 1972 Camaro traveling Highway 74 when we dated.
Two things made the drive memorable. First and foremost, seeing my sweetheart. Secondly, Sunbeam Bread. Just as Highway 74 weaved its way downtown, the unmistakable aroma of fresh baked bread captured my nostrils. I can smell it today in my head!  New, fresh bread rolled out of the bakery daily, to the delight of bread eaters everywhere.
Newly baked fresh bread is real bread!
I do not believe there will be any day-old bread in heaven. The Marriage Supper of the Lamb will serve new, fresh, out of this world bread! There is no doubt in my mind when those who confess Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord enter the pearly gates, day old bread will be history. Non-existent. Heaven’s bakers will bake up a batch of new bread!

• The new normal for Christ’s children in glory will be new.

The good news is that you and I do not have to wait to get to heaven to experience something new.
The Bible reveals many characteristics about our Heavenly Father who is our Creator and Redeemer.  One thing about the Living God that fascinates and blesses me is:  He is always doing something new.
“And He who sits on the throne said “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write for these things are faithful and true.” Revelation 21:5
“Do not call to mind the former things, or ponder things of the past; Behold, I will do something new. Will you not be aware of it.” Isaiah 43:18-19a.
I encourage you to search scripture in the Bible (use a Strong’s Concordance) to see how God does new things. Phrases like new birth, new life, new man, new creature, new song, new wine, new beginnings, new opportunities, new heaven and earth, new covenant, new heart, new thing, new spirit, new gate, new testament, new cloth, new wine, new wineskin, new commandment, new and living way, new Jerusalem. It is obvious the Gospel of Jesus Christ is all about new!
New is the way God rolls.  New is normal for Him. God is always doing something new.
Thoughtful Nuggets About New

• The new birth is the beginning of living life in Christ for a lifetime.
• New is God’s good, acceptable and perfect will for you and me.
• New challenges our attitudes. perceptions and perspectives.  New gets in the face of the old.
• New shakes up the proverbial apple cart. New rattles our comfort cages.
• Staying the same (old ways) is willful resistance to something new.
• New demands that I choose to change. No change, no new.
• New is not a one-time experience. New is constant when we walk by faith and trust the God who is always making things new. New stretches faith to deeper, higher levels of trust.
• New comes to those who expect God to do something new. Believe every day in something new from the God who loves to bless His children with surprises.   
• A mark of Christian maturity is growth in Christ. Growing in Him is all about being open to new things God has in store for us according to His promises.

If we choose, new is for me and you.
Let’s be honest. Life can become boring, stale, and get old in a hurry. God knows this. Because of His great love for us, He brings “new” into our lives all throughout our faith journey. He encourages and empowers us to keep our faith fresh, vibrant, expectant, and focused on the new paths the Lord has laid before us. Old roads are old. New roads can be extremely exciting because they are new!
Unfortunately, too many folks seldom experience something new. Why? Because they hold on to the old. Fearful of an uncertain future, they cling to what they think is a safe, risk free, certain today that is overshadowed by yesterday.

• New can be frightening because faith requires risk.

How about you? Holding on to the old? Need something new? Why settle for old when God is waiting to show you something new? Turn your heart and faith toward the One who wants to do something new in you. Open your heart to something new today. Why wait?

• My friend if you are at a crossroad, in a season of transition, choose new. New is always God’s best for us! It really is!
• Be bold. Step out of the old. Step up to new. New is good for you and me.  

A Word For Your Week: Something new is God’s will for you and me too!