Lesson 1: Count it All Joy

https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/the-priceless-gift-in-every-trial Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds . . . (James 1:2) In and of themselves, our hardships are emphatically not joyful. That’s part of what makes them hard. What could it mean, then, in circumstances like these, to “count it all joy”? When James charges us to “count Read More …

Chapters 23, 24 – Discovering God’s Purposes and Experiencing the Joy of Waiting

Pray First https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/how-do-i-wait-for-god So, the first thing that waiting on God means is this: before you make one peep of an effort to solve your own problem or hire a human agency, pray. Seek the counsel of God. What is his way to solve this problem and bring you out of trouble? It says in Psalm 106:13, Read More …

Chapter 15: Realizing the Struggle of Prayer

 “It is not a matter of time so much as a matter of heart; if you have the heart to pray, you will find the time“ – Charles Spurgeon http://www.philipkosloski.com/how-to-make-time-for-prayer-in-a-busy-schedule/ …..from Stephen Covey’s book First Things First. He explains how often when we create a daily schedule, we try to add things on to our busy schedule without Read More …

James 1:2-8 – Count it All Joy!

James 1:2: What does James mean by “trials of various kinds”? Temptations and snares (1 Timothy 6:9, Hebrews 12:4) Difficult circumstances (death, divorce, loss of job, sickness, etc) James 5:14; Social and economic persecution (James 2:6) God’s discipline (Hebrews 12:5-11). Can also be consequences of sin (addiction, jail, etc) Due to choices we make in Read More …