Rick Warren - When Your Setback Seems Irreversible - Part Two

This is Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, the audio broadcast ministry

of Pastor Rick Warren. Today we continue with a series

called how God Turns Setbacks into Comebacks. We're so glad

that you've joined us today. Now, if you know someone

who needs some encouragement right now, be sure to invite

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along with you. But first studies have shown the more

grateful a person is, the happier they are. But it's

not always easy to be thankful. That's why Pastor Rick

developed the Power of Gratitude. It's a special interactive Bible

study to help you grow your gratitude. You can find

out more by going to Pastorick dot com while you

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to eight hundred six hundred five thousand and four. Right now,

here's Pastor Rick with part two of a message called

when your Setback Seems Irreversible.

Now, job Wood.

He says this, when everything bad happened to him, I

came naked from my mother's womb and I shall have

nothing when I die. Now, let me just pause there.

You know, I have three kids. I was there when

they were all, you know, born, and they did come

in with nothing. They none of them brought toys, none

of them brought a portfolio, none of them had a briefcase.

And so I know nobody comes into this world with something.

You come in naked. And also I would say that

I have done hundreds, maybe thousands of funerals and I've

never seen a U hall parked on a gravesite. So

in this passage, you come with nothing, you leave with nothing.

That's true, he says, the Lord gave me everything I have,

and it's his right to take anything away.

Blessed be the name of the Lord.

And it says in all of this, I want you

to underline this Job did not sin by blaming God.

You know, if you were to study the book of Job,

you'd find that the main question of the book is

will you love God and will you trust God no

matter what happens? Why do you worship God? Why do

you love God only when things go good? Or will

you love God and serve God no matter what happens?

For INDs, this is the ultimate test of your faith.

Will you worship God even though everything's going wrong in

your life? You see, you are not promised a perfect life.

This is not heaven, this is earth, and so your

faith will be tested and untested faith there is really

no faith at all. And a lot of times things

happen in your life. In fact, most of the times

we don't have an explanation, and you're never going to

get it an explanation.

When bad things happen.

There may be times you just have to say, I

don't know, I don't get the big picture, but I

trust that God is good. Life is not always good,

but God is always good. And when I'm in the

presence of God in eternity one day in heaven, then

I'm going to fully understand it. Right now, my brain

isn't big enough to comprehend it. How do you trust

God when your heart is breaking? How do you put

your eyes on God when they're filled with tears? Well,

the antidote to bitterness is not to just say I

don't want to be bitter. The antidote to bitterness is

actually praise. It's worship. What is worship? It means focusing

on God. Now, if you are sitting here today listening

to me talk to you, and maybe you've never even

been in church before. Maybe this is the first time

you hear there's some things you need to know that

he as Christians, no matter what happens in life, are

thankful for Job talks about these things in his book.

Here's some facts of life that I know are true

no matter what happens to me. Number one, God will

never stop loving me. That's a big deal. Number two,

God has a plan for my life and your life.

Number three, God cares about every detail of my life

and your life. Number four God is in control of

things even when I don't understand it. And number five

God will protect me. Those are things that I can

build my life on when I don't understand why things

are happening in my life. God is here, God is near,

God cares. God is powerful. God can change it. God

has a plan, purpose, and He's going to use it

all for good. You know, earlier I mentioned that guy

named Hebakak, and I said that in the first those

three chapters of that book, they're all about the question

why why God? Well, look at this first one your

outl and Habacco three seventeen and eighteen Here's what Tobacca

did when he had a setback that looked like was irreversible.

He says this, even though the fig leaves.

Have no fruit, and even though no grapes grow on

the vine, and even though the olive crop fails and

the fields produce no grain, and even though the sheep

all die and the cattle stalls are empty. What he's

saying there, even though everything in my life is a disaster,

he says this, I'll still be joyful and glad because

the Lord God is my savior. What are you bitter

about today? What is some bitterness that you've allowed to

take root in your life? Said it earlier, Bitterness is

a poison. Bitterness destroys. It will eat you alive. It's

like a cancer that will take over your life. When

you are bitter, it always hurt you more than it

does the person you're bitter It problem with bitterness is

it doesn't hurt anybody else. It only hurts you. You

can be bitter and the person you're bitter at they

don't even know it. They can be out having a party,

eat the steak, celebrating, and it's destroying you. Now, if

you're going to break through, the setback. To come back,

you've got to tell God exactly how you feel. But

then you've got to resist bitterness. And you need to

realize two things. First, in an imperfect world, everything has

been broken by sin, and there's always going to be

plenty of disappointments to become bitter about. So don't be

surprised at that, Jesus said, in the world, you will

have tribulation and trials. But second, you need to remember

that both bitterness. Listen, both bitterness and happiness are choices,

and every moment of your life, you're always choosing one

or the other. And if you choose to be bitter

at the same moment, you're choosing to not be happy

because you can't have both the same time in your

heart and your mind. So my question is your pastor

someone who loves you, is this which one do you want?

Happiness or bitterness? Job said, the Lord gave me everything

I've ever had, and if he allows it to be

taken away, I'm still going to trust him because I

wouldn't even exist if it wasn't for God. I refuse

to be bitter because of the setback. Now here's the

third step in trusting God. It's t ru This is

the you uh in trust when you want to have

a comeback from a setback that seems irreversible. The tea

in trust tell God how I feel, the r refuse

to be bitter, and the you in trust. Cross stick

stands for unite with other people who will help me

focus on God. Unite with people who will help me

focus on God. Now I want you to get this

is very important. For any comeback, You're going to need

other people with faith to back you up. You're gonna

need other people in your life who can actually believe

God for you when your faith is shaky. This is

why you must be in a small group of believers

for regular fellowship. It's why I talk about the importance

of a small group practically every other week. That's why

this church is built on small groups. We have over

seven thousand of these small groups. They will be your

safety net when you're setback happens in your life and

you cannot isolate yourself. Now, God never intends for you

to go through life on your own. He never intends

for you to go through grief or sorrow or tragedy

or loss or difficulty or set back by yourself. He

made us for each other. He wired human beings to

need each other. We're better together, we're better in community.

And the first thing God said to man when he

created man is it's not good for men to be alone.

Here's the problem when you have a setback, or I

have a setback, when we're going through pain or suffering

or sorrow or sadness or loss, the problem is our

natural reaction to pain is to withdraw from others, to

pull back. And we want to build a wall around ourselves.

We want to build a shell, We want to put

up barriers. We want to keep people in the distance.

We don't want anybody close to us when we're in deep,

deep pain.

And God says, no, no, no, no no. That's the

exact opposite of what you need to do.

You're listening to Pastor Rick's Daily Hope. Rick will be

back in just a moment with the rest of today's lesson.

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Did you know experts have discovered that gratitude is the

healthiest human emotion. It makes you more resistant to stress

and increases your overall happiness and satisfaction. In fact, study

show the more grateful a person is, the happier they are.

That's the power of gratitude. The Bible tells us to rejoice, always,

pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances, so it's

clear that God wants us to develop an attitude of gratitude.

But we all know it's not always easy to feel grateful.

That's why Pastoric developed a Bible study called the Power

of Gratitude. This innovative study is filled with scripture, teaching, exercises, quotes, prayers,

and journal pages. As you go through the study, you'll

discover the many and often unique things you have to

be grateful for every day. You'll develop the lifelong habit

of expressing gratitude to God, a habit that leads to

true happiness and satisfaction. Will send you Pastor Rick's Power

of Gratitude Bible study to say thanks when you give

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Now let's get back to today's lesson. Here on Pastor

Rick's Daily Hope.

When we're going through pain or suffering, or sorrow or

sadness or loss, the problem is our natural reaction to

pain is to withdraw from others, to pull back, and

we want to build a wall around ourselves. We want

to build a shell, we want to put up barriers.

We want to keep people in the distance. We don't

want anybody close to us when we're in deep, deep pain.

And God says, no, no, no, no, that's the exact

opposite of what you need to do. One of Job's

friends gave this wise advice in job. Notice this that

on your outline. His name was Elihu, and in Job

thirty six he says to Job, Job, don't let your

anger and the pain that you've endured make you sneer it. God,

reputation and riches can't protect you from distress, nor can

you find safety in the dark world below. He's talking

about the occult. Don't turn to evil as a way

of escape. But God's power is unlimited. Others have praised

God for what he has done, So join with them.

If you're taking notes, I want you to circle the

phrase join with them, he says.

Other people have praised God.

Join with them. He said, that's how you're gonna make

it to the next step. You got to unite with

others who are gonna support you, encourage you, pray for you,

be with you, will help you out. Now where do

you find those kind of friends who will lift you

up when you're down, Well, A couple places.

First at weekend worship. It's where you are right now.

That's why, by the way, for those of you who

are watching online, I want to actually encourage you to

come to a church service because there are about a

dozen more benefits that you receive by actually going to

a church service and participating with other people instead of

just watching remotely. You don't get all those benefits just

by watching remotely, he says. Join with others in worship.

And then the second place that you find these kind

of encouraging people is in a small group Bible study

that meets on a weekly basis at a home or

an office or dorm. Room, and you need a small

group for your setbacks. I could give you dozens of

examples from my own personal life about how my small

group has helped me through setbacks. Now, Job's friend noticed

in that he points out a couple of very important

truths in what he says. First, he points out that

pain is a great equalizer. In other words, disaster is

impartial and suffering is random. It hits everybody. When you're

in pain, your possessions in your position and your power

are worthless. It doesn't matter how much money you've got.

If you're going through a marriage crisis that's tearing your

heart up, it still hurts. Reputation in riches, he says,

can't protect you from stressful setbacks.

It'll help.

But then Job's friend gives two pieces a very wise advice,

and this is what you need to do when you

have a setback that seems you know, irreplaceable or you know, irretrievable,

you can't come back from it. First, he says this,

here's his first advice. Never use evil to escape pain.

You know you don't. Don't try to avoid it with

you know, doing or getting drunk or doing something foolish

like having an affair. You know, a lot of people

become self destructive when they're in pain. They know it's wrong,

but still do it anyway, trying to relieve or escape

their pain. The Bible says, you know what, You're only

gonna make it worse, make the problem worse. So he said,

don't run from it doing something stupid. Second, Job's friend says,

a better alternative is to increase the amount of time

you spend hanging out with God's people. He says, join

with them. Get with God's people who praise God, who

are focusing on God. That's what worship is. And he says,

join with them. When you are needing a comeback, don't

try to do it on your own. Get with people

who are God's people who can build you up and

encourage you to help you. Focus on God when your

heart's breaking, when you're confused, when you're down, when you

feel like you're about to lose it all or you

have lost it all, don't turn from God. Turn to God.

If you turn away from God, what's the alternative? Bitterness, despair, hopelessness.

First Chronicle sixteen eleven says, go to the Lord for

help and worship him. That means focus. Worship means focus

on God's goodness. Life is not always good, I said that,

but God is always good. Now, what should you ask

for when you're talking to God about a comeback when

you've had a big setback seems irreversible?

Like job?

Well, you ask God to do a couple things, and

they're right here in this passage. You ask him for

wisdom so you're gonna have a clearer perspective, and you

ask God for strength because you're going to need both

God's wisdom and God's strength for your comeback. You can't

do it on your own. Job twelve, Verse thirteen says

this true wisdom and real power belong to God. From

him we learn how to live and also what to

live for. You want to know how to live, you

want to know what to live for. You're gonna need

God's wisdom. Where do you get that from God? The

second thing you ask God for is not just wisdom,

but you ask him for strength. Verse Chronicles sixteen eleven

There on your outline says this, go to the Lord

for help and worship him. Do you know that worshiping

God actually relaxes you? Studies have shown it actually slows

your heart? Beat down lowers your blood pressure. People who

go to church studies have shown this every week, Live longer.

Psalm sixty nine, verse thirty two says this, those who

worship God will be encouraged. Worship makes you wiser, Worship

gives you strength. Worship relaxes you from stress. Worship encourages

you because you remember that God is bigger than the

problem and the set back you're facing. And no TV

program can offer that. So to come back from a setback,

especially one that needs to.

Do, you need to do what David did.

He went to church, He went to worship, and Psalm

sixty three, David says this, here I am in the

place of worship, eyes open, drinking in your strength and glory.

That's what you do in worship. You put your eyes

on God. Your problem gets smaller, God gets bigger, and

you gain strength. You know, same thing happened over in

Philippians Chapter one. In the Bible, Verse nineteen, Paul talks

about the benefit of having people pray for you in

a small group, and he says this to the Philippian Christians.

Because you're praying for me and the Spirit of Christ

is helping me. I know that this trouble will bring

my freedom circle that word freedom. What is Paul saying here,

He's saying that prayer is the path back to your comeback.

Prayer is the path back to your comeback. So you

want to join a small group where you've got people

praying for you when you're going through tough times. Now,

you know, here at Saddleback Church and our family, we

pray specifically for people in pain in all of our

seven thousand plus small groups. Sometimes we like to do

it right here on the weekends in all of our

campuses together as a large group.

And I'd like to do that right now.

So what I'd like everybody to do is just bow

your head in all of our campuses if you valuer

it for a minute. And if you're going through a

time of grief, or you're going through a big conflict,

or you've had a big loss, are you're feeling lonely,

or you're dealing with chronic pain, whatever stress you might

be facing right now, a health setback, a financial setback,

or any kind of setback. I want to lead our

entire Saddleback Church family in all of our four different

continent to pray together for you right now and what

I want to do as a statement of your.

Faith with our heads bowed.

No matter what campus you're at, if you are going

through a major problem right now and you need prayer

from your church family, I'm going to ask you to

right now to just quietly stand with your head bowed.

You don't have to say anything, just quietly stand with

your head bowed as our entire church family prays together

for you.

Now.

People are standing up in all of our campuses right now,

and if you're sitting next to someone who stood up

just now, you might want to just reach over and

pat them on the back or grab their hand and

squeeze their hand, just to say.

We're with you.

We're a family, we're in this together, and we're supporting you.

Let's pray together as a church family for all of

our brothers and sisters who are standing right now.

You're listening to Pastor Rick's Daily Hope. We are so

happy that you've chosen to study along with us today.

If you'd like to receive hope and encouragement every day

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Rick will be back to close out our time today.

But first, experts have discovered that an attitude of gratitude

bolsters your health and happiness. So how do you practice

daily gratitude even when life is tough. Here's Rick to

tell you about a Bible study he's developed to help

you practice daily gratitude.

One of the things that God wants us to do,

and he says it over and over scripture, is to

practice gratitude. Did you know that gratitude is good for us?

The Bible tells us in First Essalon Ins five eighteen,

give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's.

Will for you. In Christ Jesus.

You want to know God's will is for you right now,

Either that you learn gratitude in all circumstances, there's always

something you can be thankful for. In fact, I've discovered,

and I've read many reports that experts have told us

that gratitude is the healthiest human emotion. Did you know

that gratitude makes you more resistant distress? Did you know

that gratitude makes you less susceptible to illness? Did you

know that gratitude increases your overall happiness and satisfaction? That

gratitude gives your life more meaning and significance. I don't

know if you've ever noticed that the more grateful a

person is, the happier they are. That's the power of gratitude.

So I want you to live with the attitude of gratitude,

the attitude of thankfulness. Now I've put together a brand

new Bible study called the Power of Gratitude, and in

it you'll find scriptures and teaching and exercises that'll help

you develop the habit cultivate the habit of gratitude. You'll

discover how to state in God's will, how to defeat discouragement,

how to conquer complaining, how to reduce stress, and how

to experience God's blessing through gratitude. Friends, I want to

help you develop a deep and a profound attitude of gratitude.

The world is craving people like this, and you will

be able to experience all that God has for you.

So today, when you partner with me by giving a gift,

a financial gift to daily hope, to help us take

the certain hope of Jesus to people all around the world,

I'm going to have my team send you the Power

of Gratitude. Bible study. I just want to say thanks

to you. I want to be grateful for you. You

know your support is essential for us taking the Daily

Hope message of Jesus all around the world. So do

that today. Send us a gift and let me send

you a gift, and you'll be grateful and so will we.

God bless you.

Go to Pastorick dot com right now to get your copy,

or you can just call eight hundred six hundred five

thousand and four. That's Pastorick dot com. Or call eight

hundred six hundred five thousand and four. Thanks so much

for your support, and don't forget to let us know

which radio station you hurt us on. Be sure to

join us next time as we look into God's word

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