USE THE TROUBLES YOU FACE TO HELP OTHERS

USE THE TROUBLES YOU FACE TO HELP OTHERS

One of the things that I believe will help us in facing troubles and overcoming them, is that we can use the experiences we have faced to help others when they face the same kinds of things. Now some people face troubles but they never use their experiences to help others. But one of the best ways to consider the troubles we face in life in a positive way, is to realize that we can use the things we have learned in these experiences to help others.

I don't really know what it's like to lose a spouse, for example, but some of you here know what it's like. When someone loses a spouse, you know how to comfort them far better than I do, because you've been through it. Those who have had family problems know what others who are having those kinds of problems are going through and can help better than those who have not faced those kinds of things. We may not know what to say in every case or even what to do about a given situation, but we can listen - we can sympathize - we can offer comfort and support.

Since we have to face these troubles in life. Since none of us are exempt. Let's use these experiences to help others get through similar circumstances. Let's use these experiences to glorify God.

Paul wrote in Second Corinthians one and verses 3 and 4, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." God comforts us in all our tribulation. He does that through His word, as we have read in this lesson some of the comforting passages dealing with facing troubles. But notice what Paul says... He "comforts us in all our tribulation THAT WE MAY BE ABLE TO COMFORT THOSE WHO ARE IN ANY TROUBLE." Those who are comforted by God have a responsibility to comfort others! Isn't that a great, amazing responsibility? We have the opportunity, because of the things we have faced in life, to help others -- to give comfort to others when they face similar things! And we are to do this "with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." In other words, God comforts us through His word, and we must use His word to comfort others. So, as you face troubles in life -- troubles that will surely come upon all of us -- seek comfort from God in His word, and realize as you're going through these things the opportunity is being created to help others who are facing similar circumstances. Learn from the comfort God gives you in His word, and extend that same comfort to others. Thus we can look upon these things in a positive light because it gives us the opportunity to help others through troubling times, an opportunity we would not have had, had we not faced those troubles in our own life.

Also, we need to look upon these things we go through as avenues through which we can grow spiritually. There is an amazing passage in the book of James, chapter one verses two through four, which says, "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." Those "various trials" include temptation to sin, but the original word includes more than that. It includes anything that brings trouble in life. What does James say our attitude toward these various trials that we face is to be? It is to be one of joy. Why? Because they are pleasant to go through? No. But because they test your faith. And the testing of your faith produces patience or endurance. And patience or endurance has it's perfect work -- that is, to make us "perfect and complete, lacking nothing." When the early Christians suffered persecution, the Bible says of them in Acts five, verse forty one, "So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name." And that is how we should feel when we face difficult situations in our lives. Our attitude should be one of joy knowing that the things we go through here (if we have the right attitude toward them) will help us grow spiritually so that we can go to heaven.