Overwhelmed 12.10.23

Overwhelmed December 10, 2023 Good morning and welcome to Lake Erie Church. Today is a day of great joy for those who know Jesus as Lord and Savior. (Mark 9:14-27) When they returned to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd surrounding them, and some teachers of religious law were arguing with them. When the crowd saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with awe, and they ran to greet him. What is all this arguing about? Jesus asked. One of the men in the crowd spoke up and said, Teacher, I brought my son so you could heal him. He is possessed by an evil spirit that won't let him talk. And whenever this spirit seizes him, it throws him violently to the ground. Then he foams at the mouth and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast out the evil spirit, but they couldn't do it. Jesus said to them, You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy to me. So they brought the boy. But when the evil spirit saw Jesus, it threw the child into a violent convulsion, and he fell to the ground, writhing and foaming at the mouth. How long has this been happening?" Jesus asked the boy's father. He replied, "Since he was a little boy. The spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us, if you can. What do you mean, If I can? Jesus asked. "Anything is possible if a person believes." The father instantly cried out, I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!" When Jesus saw that the crowd of onlookers was growing, he rebuked the evil spirit. Listen, you spirit that makes this boy unable to hear and speak, he said. I command you to come out of this child and never enter him again! Then the spirit screamed and threw the boy into another violent convulsion and left him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd as people said, He's dead. But Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to his feet, and he stood up. Introduction: As we enter into this Christmas season, I'm drawn to speak to every person who's ever dealt with a difficult problem or circumstance...THAT'S ABOUT EVERYBODY!!!! Right? There are a number of passages in the life of Jesus that are similar to this one in which a person with a difficult problem finds Jesus and appeals to His compassion for a miracle or solution! List * The 10 lepers * Blind Bartimaeus * The woman with the issue of blood This passage in Mark 9 has always appealed to me for a couple of reasons... * I'm a father * I'm a son * Both of the men in this story are relatable. You see a father with a difficult situation that is bigger than he is and a son whose blessing is he has a father who is fighting for him. There's a particular verse here that you should not pass over lightly...it's when Jesus says to the father... "Anything is possible if a person believes." The father cries out in response- "I do believe, help my unbelief" This may sound like conflicting confessions but if you look deeper, I think this is what the father is saying... I'm trying to believe but I'm completely overwhelmed by my circumstances! Have you ever been there? Ever felt that way? For the next two weeks I want to look at how to climb out of that overwhelming feeling that your problems and circumstances are creating. 3 Myths Let's start by addressing three (3) myths that seem to be prevalent with believers that I know and work with...these are people who really love the Lord but they are human and they have problems and typically, under pressure we buy into one or more of these myths and create unnecessary hurdles for our faith. Myth #1-Life Is Supposed To Be Problem-Free If you are alive, you will have problems. (John 16:33) I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. If you believe this myth you'll never find happiness or contentment because you're always going to be searching for the problem-free life and wondering why you have problems. Myth #2-Every Problem Happens For A Reason If you're like me you've been tempted to say this very thing "everything happens for a reason" and on one level I'll agree but the problem with this myth and thinking is that you start accepting that God causes or is the source for all the problems you have because He's trying to do something bigger with you. The truth is there are times when God allows trials and temptations to test us and provoke us to greater levels of faith but in realty much of our problem creating is US! Our choices, decisions and actions can often be the source of the problems we have. We must come to accept there are some things in this world that are just evil. They're just evil, and God is not the author of the evil. He doesn't create evil. He doesn't cause evil. So, don't attribute every problem you face in life to God. He's not the cause or the source of every financial problem or every illness or the relationship issue or of every failure that's in your life. A lot of those things were bad and they were caused by sin in your life or they were caused by the results of being in a broken, fallen world that was impacted by sin, but they weren't caused by God. Myth #3-No One Understands My Problems This myth tricks you into thinking you're all alone, that no one understands what you are going through and that your life and your problems, they're just worse than everyone else's and no one in the history of this planet can possibly understand all that you've had to carry through life. First, you need to understand that whatever problem you're facing, there's probably someone in our church right now who's already been through it. There's someone probably sitting this room who's already dealt with it. You're not alone. There are people in this church who can help you, who can walk through you, and walk with you through your problem because of their experience. * There are people here who've been through divorce and have come out on the other side. * There are people here who have beat cancer. * There are people here who have lost loved ones, who've lost a job, or who went through abuse or addiction. * There are people here who flunked out of school * Who went through a big break up that broke their heart and they got through it. * They understand what it is that you're feeling right now, Even more than that it and even more important than that Jesus understands. (Hebrews 4:15-16) For our high priest is able to understand our weaknesses. He was tempted in every way that we are, but he did not sin. Let us, then, feel very sure that we can come before God's throne where there is grace. There we can receive mercy and grace to help us when we need it. So when you are overwhelmed with life's problems and trouble... Don't Turn Away From God * This man who was completely overwhelmed by his circumstances demonstrated what we should always do-get to Jesus with your problem! * Too often when we are overwhelmed with issues like this father, we tend to withdraw...and that's the worst thing you can do! * By turning away from God, you're assuring your problem is going to overwhelm you and beat you. o Lean into God, because God loves you. o God cares for you. God created this universe, so obviously he's strong enough and wise enough to deal with whatever problem that's in your life right now. (Psalm 46:1) God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. * God is ALWAYS READY to help in times of trouble. * In most every case, the first step is in the direction of the One who can truly help you resolve or carry your load, so Run to God! Don't Get Bitter * It has been my experience that you have two choices when life is overwhelming you-you can get bitter or you can choose to get better. * Perhaps you've seen it in someone else...a friend, someone in your family o Something happened in their life and it seems like there was a problem or a series of problems and it just beat them down. It looks like life grabbed them and beat them down. They got hit and for a while, they tried to fight it, but after they faced that problem, they were never quite the same again. o They never got over whatever the problem was. They never got through it and now they've become bitter. They're angry, negative, complaining. o You promised--"That's never going to be me!" * Then something happened... o A problem hit you. o Tough times hit and you feel it creeping in. BITTERNESS (Hebrews 12:15) Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. * Bitterness creeps in. * It takes hold of your heart whenever you turn away from God, in the face of a problem. * You may not even realize it-but your bitterness is poisoning you and it's poisoning people and things around you. (Luke 4:18) The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised. * When you have a problem, you've got a choice. o You can either get bitter or you can get better. o You can either turn away from God and get bitter about it, or you can lean into God and get better. Don't Give Up * Thank God this father did not give up because there was an answer to his dilemma... * His name was Jesus and that encounter allowed him to take a new boy home that day. * Jesus does that! * It's why he said "anything is possible to him who believes" * Name your problem-He can fix it. Conclusion There is nothing too hard for God. What problem do you need to bring to this altar and leave it? You bring the problem and put it in His hands and leave it...you have to leave it. If it's up to you to fix the need, you're no better than when you came...leave it. God I'm a sinner I'm sorry for our sins I believe Jesus died for my sins I believe Jesus will forgive my sins I choose Jesus