When The Wise Face Trouble

Introduction Two weeks ago we look at Proverbs chapter 3. We are going back to Chapter 3 again next week. Proverbs 3:5 reminds us we want to “trust in the Lord with all our heart.” (Proverbs 3:5) But to be honest, haven’t we all had storms and troubles overwhelm us to the point of feeling our trust slipping away? Trusting God in difficult times can be, well, difficult. Eventually, at some point when we are dealing with the storms of life, we ask the question of why hard times happen. Why do storms and troubles come our way?

God created the world in a majestic display of His power. Everything was perfect and beautiful. His deepest desire was to live in fellowship in His perfect world with the people He so carefully created in His image.

Pollution, sickness, and death did not exist. Enter sin.

It separated us from God. His perfection became polluted. We now live in a scarred and broken world. Sickness and death affect our physical bodies. Sin brings pain and suffering into our lives in a myriad of ways. It is not as God intended. Life never seems to stay in rhythm.

Life can be going along smoothly for a season. Your job is satisfying. Your friends and family are enjoyable. Your goals, finances, health, and outlook seem bright. Then, all of a sudden, life throws a curveball. Someone you know gets sick. You lose your job. A friend or family member betrays you. The things you felt secure in all of a sudden feel shaky and uncertain. In an instant, life can dramatically change.

What has never changed, though, is God’s love for us and His plan to restore us and His world. He has a plan in place to fix and heal it all. First, through Jesus and His reconciling sacrifice, and next through the gift of the Holy Spirit to comfort, convict, guide, and empower us.

While we live, we will experience the consequences of our fallen world. It will be a painful and frustrating struggle. But God and His great love for us will never change. He sees us, hears our anguished prayers, and promises that when we trust in Him, the difficult times will be manageable.

As we continue in our walk through Proverbs, today we look to God's word to see how we face the troubles of life. Bible Passage Proverbs 18:9-12 (ESV - English Standard Version) 9 Whoever is slack in his work  is a brother to him who destroys. 10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower;  the righteous man runs into it and is safe. 11 A rich man's wealth is his strong city,  and like a high wall in his imagination. 12 Before destruction a man's heart is haughty,  but humility comes before honor. Scriptural Analysis V9 Both sayings in this verse point to the persistent capacity humans have for self-deception. “One who is slack” translates as "let drop what is in the hands." That's compared to the destruction of a brother that results from such negligence. All of that is to say that it is no accident. Oops does not cut it when it comes to man's capacity for self-deception. We fool ourselves into thinking we can ever do enough to save & protect ourselves. Nobody lies to us more than ourselves.

V10-11 The phrase “name of the Lord” occurs only here in Proverbs, but frequently in the Psalms, it is a sign of refuge. A strong tower refers to an essential part of a city’s defenses, a place of protection against enemy attacks. A strong tower was a central place in a region or city to which people could run when threatened. The Lord’s name implies his character as the eternal, powerful, faithful, covenant-keeping God. We can modify the image into modern languages by saying, “The Lord is my defense” or “The name of the Lord defends me.” The righteous man runs into it and is safe. This refers to “good” or “upright” people, or perhaps in this context people who trust in (the name of) the Lord. Safe renders a Hebrew word that means to “be high”; it is the same term as used in the next verse for “a high wall.” In this verse the sense is “out of the way of harm” or “safe from attack.” These phrases can be expressed as “can go and hide in it.” Here Solomon is saying the righteous can trust that they will be set on high, above storms, safe and sound.

For many, their possessions, their wealth, their abilities, and their self-confidence is their strong city. For many, they think they are protected by their own work and hands, but in reality, they are not. Only dependence on the Lord can give real protection. The righteous people, who call on, rely upon, and have faith in the character of God, will be protected so the enemy cannot reach them.

V12 This proverb comes as a capstone to the previous sayings about high and safe places, for here we learn that hearts can be 'proud.' Yet this rise is only a precursor to a “downfall,” a breaking or destruction. The second line provides the happy reversal, in that “humility” or lowliness comes before “honor.” It seems that either attitude leads inexorably to its opposite. “Pride leads to destruction; humility leads to honor.” A person who thinks he is superior to others will experience a downfall. Humility on the other hand results in strength and can give a person the determination to face the trouble life brings. Those who realize that God is their strong tower, their protection, will eventually be much better off than those who think they can save themselves through their own efforts or possessions and wealth.

TODAY'S KEY TRUTH The Wise Know God Is Their Only Shelter in Trouble. Application Several proverbs on personal security here stand together. First, it is axiomatic in Proverbs that laziness and self-deception lead to personal calamity (v. 9). Second, God is the only real source of security (v. 10). Third, the danger of wealth is that it gives its possessor the illusion of greater security than it can provide (v. 11). Fourth, the very time when one feels most secure (and thus is most arrogant) is when disaster is likely to occur (v. 12). There is something of a first-shall-be-last quality to this teaching.

No one is free from danger or harm. Trouble comes to everyone. God promises to keep his people from all lasting spiritual and physical danger; he requires that his people act responsibly and humbly. Act responsibly in the work and duties God gives us but humbly in knowing that God is the ultimate source of protection. The Bible does give many individual names to God, all of which reflect some true aspect of his character. The name of the Lord is a Biblical expression for the whole character of God. The name of the Lord refers to God's person and character. Many of these names are taken from human experience or emotions in order to describe parts of God’s character, while many other names are taken from the rest of the natural creation. In a sense, all of these expressions of God’s character in terms of things found in the universe are “names” of God because they tell us something true about him. Here the Lord is our strong tower. The Lord is a strong tower in fearful and scary times. It is the name of the Lord that is our strong tower. It is the place of safety that God promises to those who run to Him.

Everyone struggles with their own personal issues. When you add it all up, life can get pretty ugly, and complicated, and make us want to run for the hills. If that’s not the answer, where do we turn?

Just as the good, happy, and joyous times of life are part of life, so are the difficult, hard, and dark times. The life of Jesus is an example of this. He had a remarkable season of ministry, and many people were healed and restored. But the true value of His coming to earth is found in the difficult and hard times He faced, the false accusations, the cruel punishment, and the death that He endured which gave us the hope we have. The truth of that matter is that no one is exempt from troubles and challenges during the course of life. Although when we are facing hard times, it may appear as if everyone else is doing just fine, this is not the case. The Bible speaks about 'when trouble comes' not 'if trouble comes'.

2 of the reasons why we go through difficult seasons in our lives: We’re doing something wrong. We’re doing something right.

Hard times don't always mean we have done something wrong. Sometimes we can mistakenly attribute the hardship we are facing to something we may have done wrong. Although wrong-doing has its own consequences, seasons of difficulty are not necessarily the result. As Christians, we may believe that we have moved out of darkness and into light, and this is true. The darkness of sin has been lifted, but the process of life is still something we face. It is possible to do all the right things and know the favor and blessing of God on our lives, and still go through hard times, through no fault of our own, but due to the nature of life itself. I am reminded of Jesus' own disciples. He sent them by boat across the sea and on route to their destination, they faced a storm of note. They were actually in the perfect will of God and yet faced this major challenge.

Now let's be honest even though God CAN protect us, doesn’t mean He will. Remember, He is an all-knowing, all-seeing God and He knows what is best for us. It’s all about His will for our lives. So don’t forget that even when difficult times happen, those events are still all for our good and God’s glory. Now we might not see the point on this side of Heaven, but it’s the truth.

The Wise Know God Is Their Only Shelter in Trouble.

But here is one of the shelters God provides: Hard times will pass. When we go through hard times, it can feel like trouble is all we have known our entire lives. It may even feel like it will never end. Often we feel powerless when we endure hardships. But there is something we can do. Every time you walk through a difficult time and maintain an attitude of praise and humility before God, you will find your faith, patience, and love becoming stronger, more established, and more settled. That is the hidden power of humility working in your life.

Solomon is revealing that having faith in God's protection during difficult times can allow you to find peace in God's presence. When you are focused on yourself and your abilities, your possessions, and your wealth, it can harden your heart with pride and cause you to grow distant in your relationship with Him. The real reason why letting go and letting God take control can be difficult is because we don't fully trust the character of God. We can trust God when times are tough — but only up to a point if we hold onto any self-reliance. We run towards God when things are hard we must let go of the self-deception that we can fix it. Learning to give up all your struggles and problems to God can lift a heavy burden off yourself.

The Wise Know God Is Their Only Shelter in Trouble. Conclusion Going back to this example, after feeding the 5,000, Jesus put the disciples in a boat and sent them to the other side of the lake. Several hours later, they encounter a storm.

Jesus saw them (from land; miles away!) straining in the wind and walked out to them on the water. When the disciples saw Him walking on the lake, it terrified them. They thought He was a ghost. Jesus calls out to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” Impetuous Peter calls out, “Lord if it’s you, tell me to come to you on the water.” Jesus invites him to come and Peter steps out of the boat and walks on the water towards Jesus. The wind and storm frightened him, however, and he started to sink. “Lord, save me!” he cried. Immediately Jesus reached out and caught him. “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

The major obstacle that keeps us from fully offering all our hardships to God is our doubts. As humans, we often feel so attached to our secular views about wealth and possessions, and personal abilities that we sometimes forget the things that matter most. In addition, influences from hell constantly work in the shadows, trying to draw us away from our true identity in Jesus. Every day is a constant battle between good and bad. While we have the free will to choose, we must have the discernment not to be afraid to take the leap of faith and choose God regardless of the troubles that lurk among us.

The Wise Know God Is Their Only Shelter in Trouble.

KEYS TO TRUSTING GOD DURING THE HARD TIMES - 1. Prayer has proved to be a lifeline in my life, especially when going through difficult times. Prayer has the power of shifting our focus from our situation and onto our God. Our God is mighty, powerful, able, and faithful. I have found prayer especially beneficial when I started praying for others. When I shift my focus off myself and my situation and begin to pray for others, in their distress, it brings perspective and shifts my attention onto others and their needs. If we find ourselves experiencing anxiety, distress or worry over the hard times in our lives, we need to turn to the Lord. In Philippians 4:6-7, Paul says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Pray. Especially for others. - 2. Do the possible and leave the impossible to God. Sometimes we think that we are responsible to do the impossible. Let me just release you of that weight. God is responsible for the impossible and we are asked to do what is within our ability to do. Sometimes we just have to say, "God this is your problem. I'll let you handle it." - 3. Releasing the weight of things to the Lord. Let go of things. Hundreds of years ago, Martin Luther wrote a great hymn: A Mighty Fortress Is Our God. In the last verse he wrote these words: 'Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also; the body they may kill, God truth abideth still, His Kingdom is forever.' The message of these words is that we should not hold too tightly to our possessions, our family, our friends, or to life itself - we should hold tightly to God and the eternal dimension. - 4. Keep putting one foot in front of the other.

The Wise Know God Is Their Only Shelter in Trouble.

God will follow through on His promises.  He is simply waiting for you to trust Him. God reminds us to have confidence in His promise that His protection and peace will sustain us even if adversaries become stronger and clouds became darker while in a storm. God tells us during the hard times we face that we will bounce back stronger and bolder as we cling to His promises of an eternal life filled with joy, rejoicing, and forgiveness. Remember God as your ultimate source of strength and peace when you feel afraid. Seek Him through prayer, and let the word of God be the stream that invigorates and grants you rest.

Trust is to believe in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of something. So, when it comes to trusting God, that means believing in His reliability, His Word, His ability, and His strength. The Bible says that God cannot lie. That He always keeps His promises. That He loves you and has good in store for you. Trusting in Him means believing what He says about Himself, about the world, and about you is true. You are loved. His is a strong tower. He can and will shelter you. In times of doubt, remember His promises. Remember who He has always been. Even in doubt and uncertainty, if you keep going to Him, He will continually show Himself to be trustworthy. He is our strong tower.

The Wise Know God Is Their Only Shelter in Trouble.