Category — What’s new?

God delights in turning misfortune to good fortune, calamite into blessing and great need into abundance! In 1 Samuel 1 we read the account of a woman named Hannah. Although she and her husband had been married for many years, she remained childless. Her inability to bear a child was a source of “great anguish and grief” to her. Not only did she personally long to hold and nurture her own child, but her rival cruelly mocked and taunted her because she couldn’t bear children.

One year, while Hannah and her husband were worshiping at Shiloh, Hannah prayed a desperate prayer to God again begging him to give her a son. It’s striking that she specifically asked for a son. Furthermore, she promised that she would devote this son to the Lord and His service all his life. Meanwhile, Eli the priest saw her praying and told her, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him.” (1 Samuel 1:17) [Read more →]

Enthralled with God

God created us for relationship with him, but what does that look like? How do we interact with God? What does he expect from us? We are to love God, but what is this about enjoying him? Two-way communication is a hallmark of any relationship, so how does communication function in our relationship with God? How does God speak to us? How do we recognize his voice? What do we do with what he tells us? Rob seeks to answer all these questions and more through the Scriptures and lots of examples from his own life, so that you too may be enthralled with God!

Enthralled with God–Cultivating a Joy-Filled Relationship with Him is available on Amazon.com! You will find the book in both soft-cover and e-version.

Below is the brief introduction from this book that I’m sure you’ll want to read. [Read more →]

Yet another benefit of hardship, suffering and trials is that they offer us the opportunity, like nothing else, to demonstrate the all-sufficiency of Christ in our lives. The apostle Paul was uniquely chosen by God to represent to others the all-sufficiency of Christ in the midst of suffering. In fact, when Paul came to know Jesus, the Lord said of him, “I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” (Acts 9:16)

After many years of serving Christ and taking the Gospel to those who had not yet heard the good news of Christ, Paul recounts some of his sufferings, persecutions and trials in 2 Corinthians 11. He had been flogged, beaten and imprisoned numerous times. He had been ship-wrecked three times and once had spent a day-and-a-half in the open sea. He’d been in danger from bandits, from his own countrymen and from the Gentiles. He had often worked hard to support himself and others, often gone without sleep, food, shelter and even clothes. Besides all this he often felt overwhelmed by his concern for the welfare of the churches he and his co-workers had established. (2 Corinthians 11:23-28) [Read more →]

A fifth benefit of hardship is that it stretches us and builds character. Romans 5:3 explains, “We rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” The perseverance produced by suffering molds and shapes our character.

I can’t think of a better example from the Bible of this benefit and principle of hardship and suffering than the account of Joseph in Genesis. Although Joseph’s brothers meant to harm him by selling him as a slave, God turned it into something profoundly good. But for 13 years Joseph suffered severe hardship as a slave and then an inmate in an ancient Egyptian prison. His hardships also included the pain and agony of being separated from his family and the cruel rejection he had experienced at the hands of his brothers. [Read more →]

A fourth benefit of hardship, suffering and trials is that they expose and help us root sin out of our lives. In Isaiah 48:10 God says, “See, I have refined you, though not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.” In refining a precious metal like gold or silver, the metal is heated to a liquid state and then the dross or imperfections are skimmed from the surface to make it more pure.

In the same way, God uses “heat” and “pressure” in our lives to bring sinful patterns to the surface. For instance, it’s easy to love others when they too are loving and caring toward us. But when the heat is cranked up and someone treats us with anger and malice we are tempted to throw back at them what they threw at us. Christ wants to change that in us, but without the heat and pressure of the moment, our sin won’t be revealed. [Read more →]

A third benefit of hardship, suffering and trials is that they teach us how to worship. In Job, chapter one, we read the account of a godly man named Job. Job was very wealthy and he loved and worshiped God. The Scripture tells us that Satan objected to God that the only reason Job served God was because God had blessed him. Satan insisted that if Job were stripped of his wealth and possessions he would curse God instead. So God gave Satan permission to attack Job in this manner.

We’re told that in one day through a series of horrible catastrophes, Job lost all of us flocks, herds, servants and even his children! His loss and grief must have been beyond comprehension! Yet, look at Job’s response in Job 1:20-21, “At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” [Read more →]

Another benefit of hardship is that it drives us to depend on God. When we are brought to the end of ourselves and see how frail and limited we are, we recognize our need for God. The apostle Peter explains what our response should be in hardship and suffering, “So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.” (1 Peter 4:19)

When I was a sophomore in high school, 23 of us young men embarked on a 1300-mile bicycle trip around Lake Superior. We had transported our bicycles from Minneapolis, MN to Superior, WI and launched our trip from there. We rode counter-clockwise around the lake through Wisconsin, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and into Ontario, Canada. After the first three days of sore muscles and butt fatigue we were all feeling pretty confident and energized by the challenges of the trip. [Read more →]

With our economic downturn, rising costs and joblessness, hardships are on the rise. Yet hardships provide fertile ground for personal growth and blessing. Wait a minute, there are benefits to hardship? Yes! Really? Hardship, trials, suffering—who in their right mind would want those!? Our natural response in any trial or suffering is to pray first for deliverance. We shouldn’t feel bad for wanting out of a painful situation, but all too often we seek only deliverance without considering first how to extract the benefits of our hardship.

A short time ago, I prayed with an individual in the hospital who had been there nearly three weeks. I challenged that person not to miss the good things God might have for them in the midst of their suffering. Predictably, this individual blurted out, “I just want to get out of here!” That response is okay. It’s normal. But there’s more to any such tough situation that we won’t want to miss! [Read more →]

In her short book, The Liberty of Obedience, Elizabeth Elliot reveals a code for obedience to Christ espoused by the prominent Christian schools of the second century. Students were told they must: abandon all colored clothes and opt only for white; stop sleeping on a pillow; sell their musical instruments; stay away from white bread; and refrain from bathing and shaving. “To shave is to lie against Him who created us, to attempt to improve on His work.”

Those second century rules seem ridiculous to us now, just as our own rules will no doubt appear foolish to others in the future. Since the beginning, mankind has always tried to establish our own rules to define what obedience to Christ looks like. The Christ-followers in Colosse fell into this trap and Paul dealt with it head-on: [Read more →]

I’m excited to announce that my new book, Enthralled with God–Cultivating a Joy-Filled Relationship with Him is available on Amazon.com! You will find the book in both soft-cover and e-version.

Below is the brief introduction from this book that I’m sure you’ll want to read.

Introduction

A few years ago, a young woman named Amy was living with us. One evening we heard the front door open and my wife and I went to the top of the stairs to greet Amy. She was returning home from discipleship training at our church. I called down to her and asked her how it went.

Amy had a huge grin on her face and stood there speechless for a moment. Then she blurted out, “I’ve been a Christian for many years, but tonight I discovered that I can enjoy God!—This changes everything!”

It’s true! Enjoying God, being enthralled with him does change everything! My experience and that of countless others have been every bit as dramatic and life-changing.

If you long to know God more deeply, seeing him as your joy and delight, then this book is for you! You are embarking on a great adventure with God!

© 2010 Rob Fischer

To order your copy of Enthralled with God please click on the link: http://www.amazon.com/Enthralled-God-Cultivating-Relationship-ebook/dp/B004CRSSZ6/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1290529603&sr=1-4