Digging Deeper
Heart Guide for Lesson 23:
Spiritual Warfare 101
Romans 8:28 says God works all things together for our good. There are 'generic' good things that He is always working for our good through experiences of brokenness, weakness and pain. This is a partial listing intended to expand your vision to see your life from heaven's perspective. Pray for God to move upon your heart and will so that you can deeply agree with Him that these good things are worth the suffering, the 'pain of passage' into His higher life (2 Corinthians 4:17).
Some of the ways in which God works to bring good out of bad things:
1) Our brokenness humbles us.
2) Our brokenness helps us realize our dependence upon God.
3) In our brokenness God draws near.
4) Our brokenness enables us to have compassion on others.
5) His strength is made perfect in places of our weakness.
6) In our weakness we discover that His grace is sufficient.
7) He comforts us.
8) With the comfort we learn to receive from Him, we learn to comfort others.
9) He grieves with us - and we learn to enter into His sufferings.
10) We learn (in our hearts - not just heads) He is not the author of evil or of suffering.
11) We grow a stronger prayer life.
12) We really begin to search for God's love and hope and help.
13) We really begin to search His Word for understanding.
14) We cling to His Word and learn to trust it.
15) We cling to His Word and learn to obey it.
16) We see His salvation as He delivers us.
17) We learn to love the world less and God more.
18) We learn to mistrust what is in us.
19) We learn to mistrust what is in others.
20) We learn to open ourselves to the help and encouragement of others.
21) We learn to discern whom to trust and when.
22) We learn to discern true good and true evil (not what we call good and evil).
23) We learn to forgive and so become more like Him in His way of loving us.
24) We learn to receive His forgiveness and so become more aware of His love.
25) God develops a track record with us and this establishes us in trusting Him.
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