Curious, if there's anyone here who has had a perfect life. If that’s you say, “Oh yeah.”

Every single one of us has faced adversity. Some of that adversity comes from our family of origin, from our work, the people and environment around us, social media, and a lot of it as well comes from internally. I'm probably not the only one that needs to be better about my self talk

And if all of that wasn't enough, there are adversities that revolve around our specific responsibilities in our personal lives, such as being a spouse, parent, a provider, a protector.

And then there's the other part that is the intangible: our spiritual lives. We face constant adversity from our collective enemy, Satan.

Adversity this from a Latin word that originally meant to turn towards, and by the time it got to the old French, it took on the modifier of “hostile." It seems to me that is a really good definition of the word. I know I'm not the only one that has felt like either a person or a situation, even a spirit of some sort, has turned towards us with the intent of causing harm.

The question is, what do you do in that moment? How do you respond to adversity?

Last week in the message, I mentioned five events in the Bible, where God miraculously rescued the main character.

Noah lived in a time that was so evil that he flooded the earth. Imagine the adversity he faced, and not just the ridicule that he might've heard from people around him, but he had to build, a massive ship out of wood. The scale of that alone from a construction standpoint is insane.

What about Joseph? Adversity from his own family, from his masters, from Pharaoh. Every time he turned around, someone was being hostile towards him.

Moses faced adversity, but the enemy that was the most daunting for him was himself. The hostility to himself, we see in his own self doubt at the burning bush, was intense.

Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were conquered, enslaved, and their captors demanded they abandon everything that made them who they were. Spiritual adversity, pressures from the culture around them, sound familiar?

“What happened to you is not what matters. How you responded is.”
How do you respond to the pressures of life around you? The adversity you face? Do you get angry and fight back? Do you go silent and disengage? Do you allow your faith to retreat and your emotions to advance? How are you supposed to respond?

Can I just go on record right now and say that sometimes I want revenge? Sometimes I want to get even. Sometimes I want to just get angry and wig out. Sometimes I want to try these hands and not Jesus. Sometimes I want to just give up. Am I the only one? Sometimes I feel like that dude Sisyphus from the Greek myth who had to push the boulder up the hill only for it to roll back down and do it all over again. Sometimes I feel like there's so much pressure and it never lets up, it never wanes, it's like it seems it only gets more difficult with more pressure. Where’s the release valve on life?

Adversity is what I’m facing, and the older I get, the more I realize that adversity never goes away.

So that leads me to a series of questions I have to answer. The first one is why am I facing adversity right now? This is a good place to start. There has to be a reason why. Most times life’s adversity is to due one of two things: Bring correction or bring education.

If you are facing adversity in your life right now, it might be because you need correction. Now this plays out in two main ways: addressing behavior and rerouting.

Correction: Addressing behavior
You might be experiencing adversity because you've made some bad decisions. I know no one wants to hear that they are wrong, but it is possible that the adversity you are facing in this exact moment is because of a series of decisions or behavior that was not God's best for you.

For example, if you are struggling financially, it could be because you are not in financial covenant with God through giving him the first fruits of your tithe, but it also could be because you have been undisciplined in how you spend the 90% that remains.

If you are struggling in your relationship with your spouse, it could be because you have not been putting in the effort to developing that relationship, rather, you've given your thoughts, words, and actions to other things, even if those other things aren't necessarily bad.

Are you thinking, saying, or doing things that are counter to what God wants you to think, say, and do, and, as a result, experiencing adversity?

Proverbs 15:10
Whoever abandons the right path will be severely disciplined

How does that discipline come, and further, what do you think God cares about more: You being corrected or you liking correction?

Hebrews 12:11
No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

In the same way our kids don't like correction when they are getting it, we don't either, but as parents, we know it's not about whether or not they like it, it's about them being corrected. We love our kids too much to let them continue down the path that's going to lead to destruction. We are constantly putting out kids’ best interest forward. God does that, too.

So, serious question: Are you experiencing adversity because your behavior needs addressing?

Correction: Rerouting.
Correction isn't always about addressing bad behavior. Sometimes it's about simply rerouting you.

I'm sure many of us have taken a step into something that we thought was what God wanted for us, but we just missed it and, not out of any type of sinful activity or intentionally ignoring God, we just took the wrong step. A lot of times God will allow adversity in our lives to serve as bumpers like in a bowling alley. No one is trying to throw the ball in the gutter, but the bumpers help keep the ball in the alley. Same thing with adversity. Sometimes God uses adversity as a bumper to reroute you onto the right path.

Example: Acts 16:6-10
6 Paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. 7 Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. 8 So instead, they went on through Mysia to the seaport of Troas.
9 That night Paul had a vision: A man from Macedonia in northern Greece was standing there, pleading with him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” 10 So we decided to leave for Macedonia at once, having concluded that God was calling us to preach the Good News there.

They didn’t experience adversity as in behavior correction, but the door they wanted to walk through was blocked. So rather than push their way through, they waited on the Lord. Don’t push down doors that are closed might be a word for someone here…

So that’s a quick overview of the correction part, but what about the education part?

Education: Sometimes we face adversity because we need to learn a lesson, and sometimes we face continual adversity because we aren’t learning it.

When facing adversity, be slow to ask why and quick to ask what. Not, “Why, Lord, am I experiencing this,” but, “Lord, what are you wanting to show me?”

I am not saying we can never ask why, but our hunger for what needs to be stronger than our hunger for why, or else we might miss what God is wanting to do through us.

Example: Saul was preaching threats against Christians. Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus. The Lord appears to Ananias and told him to go lay hands on Saul.

Acts 9:11-16
11 The Lord said, “Go over to Straight Street, to the house of Judas. When you get there, ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul. He is praying to me right now. 12 I have shown him a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and laying hands on him so he can see again.”
13 “But Lord,” exclaimed Ananias, “I’ve heard many people talk about the terrible things this man has done to the believers[c] in Jerusalem! 14 And he is authorized by the leading priests to arrest everyone who calls upon your name.”
15 But the Lord said, “Go, for Saul is my chosen instrument to take my message to the Gentiles and to kings, as well as to the people of Israel. 16 And I will show him how much he must suffer for my name’s sake.”

Thank the Lord Ananias’ hunger for what was stronger than his hunger for why, or else we might have never known Paul the Apostle. Asking why is fine until asking why stops you from doing what God said.

Now that we more fully understand some common reasons for adversity, what is left is how to respond to adversity appropriately. So how?

1. Do The Basics
Prayer, Study, Worship. Let’s get the church answers out of the way first.

Let me first say that if you re not daily engaging in prayer, study of the Bible, and worship, adversity is going to look and feel bigger than it really is. HUGE. A top benefit of an active relationship with Jesus is the protection that comes from it.

Isaiah 59:19
When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.
“Standard” here in Hebrew - the breath of God that drives away.

Just as my family is under my protection, when you are in an active relationship with Jesus, you are under his protection. That doesn't mean nothing bad will ever happen to you, but it means whenever the enemy brings even the most aggressive adversity, that the very breath of God will drive it away. But you need to be close to God!

Prayer gets you out of your emotions and invites God’s will and action. The Word arrests anxiety by reminding you of God's faithfulness. Worship adjusts your focus away from the adversity and onto the person of Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 26:3
You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.

You going to heaven when you die is only a small portion of the benefits of a relationship with Jesus Christ. I am grateful to God that my confession of faith in Jesus as Lord has secured me the opportunity to spend eternity with him, but I need him more now.

My relationship with Jesus is more beneficial to me now than perhaps it will be in glory. In heaven I won’t have problems. I won't have struggles. I won't have trials or temptations. In heaven, I won’t have pain and hurts and brokenness, neither sin, nor adversity.

But I have all of those things in abundance here on this earth. And my initial response to adversity should be to do the basics that allow me to maintain an active relationship with my Savior.

I pray, not because I'm supposed to, because I can't live without it.I read the word, not because I have to, but because his words are the only words that give me life.I worship, not because it is expected, but because I need to constantly have my eyes focused on who he is.

In truth, prayer, studying the Word, and worship aren’t really just the basics.
They are the very pillars of my relationship with Jesus.

And here is why that relationship is so important in facing adversity:
John 16:33
I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows (adversity). But take heart, because I have overcome the world.

You want to respond well to adversity, do the basics. How?
- Talk to God like you’d talk to a friend.
- Read a verse a day, even topical if you want.
- Worship. Put on a playlist, or just tell him who he has been to you.

Here’s a webpage to help. www.freedomdl.com/basics

2. Engage Godly People
Before you say anything, yes, I know that almost every single message we preach has some element to it where we are saying you need godly people in your life. So let me just say: you need godly people in your life.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
9 Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. 10 If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. 11 Likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. But how can one be warm alone? 12 A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.

Some translations say it like this: "Woe to him who falls alone.”

Why do we harp on this so much? We’ve talked to you about the 5 (know you/God, love you/God, has best interest in mind) We’ve talked to you about accountability. But there’s another reason, and it is because you need help with adversity.

Luke 22:1-6
1 The Festival of Unleavened Bread, which is also called Passover, was approaching. 2 The leading priests and teachers of religious law were plotting how to kill Jesus, but they were afraid of the people’s reaction.
3 Then Satan entered into Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve disciples, 4 and he went to the leading priests and captains of the Temple guard to discuss the best way to betray Jesus to them. 5 They were delighted, and they promised to give him money. 6 So he agreed and began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus so they could arrest him when the crowds weren’t around.

The very next scene after this moment is the Last Supper. Judas’ decision was not one made at the start of his time with Jesus, before the miracles and teachings. It was at the end. All that was left was for Jesus to actually fulfill all he came to do.

We see what was really going on in Judas’ heart by a phrase he said in the Last Supper. You see, Judas had thought Jesus was going to be a reigning king who expelled the Romans and restored the Kingdom of David. This is what most 1st century Jews thought the Messiah would do. But Jesus was not here to do that. Judas, like the rest of them, spent 3 years with Jesus.
He saw the miracles. He heard the teachings. He had access to Jesus we could only dream of, yet in all that time, Judas never understood who Jesus really was.

We see this in Matthew 26:25
25 Then Judas, the one who would betray him, said, “Surely you don’t mean me, Rabbi?” Jesus answered, “You have said so.”

In a room where everyone called Jesus Lord, Judas calls him Rabbi. This tells us what was happening in Judas’ heart. Judas doubted who Jesus claimed he was, but he never told anyone. Judas’ eventual betrayal of Jesus was the natural result of isolated adversity.

Isolated Adversity.
I asked what you did when adversity came to you. Judas didn’t just wake up one day and decided to betray Jesus. There was a build up. There were moments where Judas faced the adversity of not understanding. There were times when he could feel the frustration of his missed expectations.

We often bust on Peter for having a big mouth. Peter: “Kill you Jesus? No that ain’t happening.” Jesus: “Hush Satan.” Peter: “Betray you? I’ll die for you!” Jesus: “Rooster says what?”

Peter had those adverse moments, too, but Peter was willing to voice them. Judas isolated in them, refusing to talk about them. The result was Peter who denied Jesus but repented and was restored, and Judas who denied Jesus but died lost and broken.

I am not telling you today that isolating in the midst of the adversity you are facing is going to kill you, but it will definitely kill what God wants to do in you, and perhaps even the rescue from adversity you’ve longed for. It will definitely make you frustrated, angry, and bitter. it will definitely lead you down a path of apostasy instead of faithfulness.

Have you ever watched a movie or tv show and you just wanted to scream at the character facing adversity to just tell the people around them what was really going on because that would solve the problem? It was just a misunderstanding.

Yeah…Why haven’t you told anyone about your struggle yet?
Why are you trying to go it alone? How’s that working out for you?

How many more months are you going to deal with that addiction?
How many more years are you going to refuse to forgive that person?
How much more of your life are you going to give to brokenness?

You don’t have to tell everyone, but you better tell someone.

Ecclesiastes 4:12
A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.

Do you want to win or not? Don’t make me ask you if you wanna taste the glory to see what it tastes like.

How much longer do you want to struggle with adversity? To lose to it? Telling someone is not the guarantee you will defeat it, but it is the guarantee that you are no longer alone in it.

3. Fight Back
What do I mean by this? Like start busting people up? No. Do you really think satan is just going to lay back and let you win? Do you expect adversity, or are you expecting smooth seas? Something that has been lost in many churches is instruction on how to fight. And that you know the enemy is going to attack, you have to be ready.

How? Ephesians 6:10-18
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.

“Schemes” - Methodia in Greek, from 2 words that mean “method of trickery.” God’s called us to stand up against the methods of satanic trickery. So you learn to recognize his methodology and you prepare for it. Ex. Don’t take your phone in the bathroom. Don’t take the bait or fall into the trap.

By the way, growing up, I always saw my parents fight back with the word of God, not with emotion. You have incredible weapons to fight against adversity in the Word of God, and worship. That's why you do the basics.
Every soldier goes through basic training because basic training gives them the discipline for the battle. When you're in the middle of the battle, it's too late to learn the basics. You need to be doing the basics before the first bullet flies.

Ephesians 6:12
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

This is why you don't get to bust people up. They are the wrong enemy. Yes, we fight back, but we better know what we’re fighting back against! It isn't that family member or that boss or that road rager on the loop. You are fighting against principalities and powers that are trying to derail you. The devil just uses some people more than others lol That's why having emotional overreactions is never beneficial. How would your life change if you realized that adversity with the people around you was a method of trickery that Satan is using just to create problems between you and God?

People are not typically evil at their core. They are simply responding poorly to their own adversity. They hurt you because they're hurting. They just don't know better. But even if they do, are we going to be a contributor to their adversity, or an advocate against it? I know this is hard. I know this is advanced Christianity. But we are called to be light and salt, y’all!

Ephesians 6:13
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Having done everything, to stand. There are going to be days where you've done everything you were supposed to do and the attack is still coming, that's when you keep standing. Don't give up, don't lose ground, don't give in. Set your face like a flint and refuse to take the bait.

Sometimes the way we fight back best is through our willingness to never give up. I know you are tired, I know you've been trying, I know you've been under attack, I know it's not fair, I know you've wanted God to step in and just stop it all, but I really pray that you embrace what I'm about to tell you:
the adversity is doing something good in you.

James 1:2-4
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

2 Corinthians 4:8-9
We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;

2 Chronicles 15:7
But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.”

Hebrews 12:12-13
12 So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. 13 Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong.

God is working in you through adversity, so here’s how we respond. You’ve waited the whole message and here it is:
You stand firm. You do the basics. You engage godly people in the fight. You put on the armor. You declare Scripture. You take a new grip.

There is so much more to be said on this subject but I don’t have time today. But I can tell you this: James 1:12
Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

There is a blessing that comes with staying faithful.
There is a crown of life waiting for those who are steadfast under trial.
There is a reward for withstanding the test.

This week I made a list of all the places I feel adversity. I asked: Am I in intentional sin? Am I being disobedient? Am I doing what’s right but still under attack? Is God trying to show me something? Is God using adversity to develop me? Sin needs repentance. Disobedience needs obedience. If God is developing me, I need to be steadfast.

I want to ask you today are you steadfast amidst adversity or are you struggling beneath it? If you’re standing strong, keep standing. But if you are struggling today, you need to respond.

“I am struggling today and I need you to pray for me.”
I want to pray for strength to stand in the midst of adversity.
Let’s pray.

What is the Holy Spirit saying to you through this message?

How does he want you to respond?