Here are scriptures and examples of how valuable gains can be made through awful pains in our lives.

1. TRUSTING GOD
IN HARD TIMES
His Goodness Is Greater Than Our Problems

2. CAN WE TRUST GOD AND
THANK HIM IN ALL THINGS?
Even in the midst of great adversity?

3. WE SAY WE BELIEVE
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart
And do not lean on your own
understanding. In all your ways
acknowledge Him, And He will make
your paths straight…” (Prov. 3:5-6)

4. WE SAY WE BELIEVE
“The steps of a good man are ordered
by the Lord: and He delights in his
way.” (Ps. 37:23)

5. WE SAY WE BELIEVE
“And we know that God causes all things
to work together for good to those who
love God, to those who are called
according to His purpose.” (Romans
8:28: )

6. WE SAY WE BELIEVE
“Be anxious for nothing, but in
everything by prayer and supplication
with thanksgiving let your requests be
made known to God.” (Phil. 4:6)

7. WE SAY WE KNOW
“And my ways are far beyond anything
you could imagine.” (Is. 55:8)

8. BUT CAN WE TRUST HIM
When Life Gets Hard?

9. HOW IS GOD GOOD TO US?
When Life Puts Us Back On the Potter’s Wheel?

10. OUR STRUGGLES CAN LEAD TO
GREAT BLESSINGS FOR
OTHERS
HERE ARE SOME EXAMPLES

11. JOB
Job did his best, but life fell apart.
Job didn’t know he was helping God win a
cosmic contest with the devil.
Job’s godly response to his suffering
brought great honor to God in heaven and in
hell.

12. THE JEWEL FORGED IN THE JAIL
Pilgrim's Progress (1678)
was written by John
Bunyan…
while imprisoned
It is regarded as one of the
most significant works
of religious English
literature.

13. JONI EARECKSON TADA
• A diving accident in
1967 left Joni, then 17, a
quadriplegic in a
wheelchair, without the
use of her hands.
• Joni is the Founder of
Joni and Friends
International Disability
Center—an international
advocate for people with
disabilities.

14. MUHAMMAD’S LOSS
The World’s Gain

15. THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS
1000 Years Newer Than Any Other OT manuscript

16. LT. MATTHEW MAURY
• Lt. Maury’s seagoing
days ended at 33 after
he broke his right leg.
• Thereafter, he devoted
himself to study winds
and currents.
• He is now called the
”Father of Modern
Oceanography and
Naval Meteorology"

17. ANDRE CROUCH
• As a boy, Andre could
not speak without a
severe stutter. He could
only say complete
sentences if he sang
them.
• Seven Grammy Award’s
later, he is often called
"the father of modern
gospel music"

18. JOSEPH’S AGONY
Brought Great Ecstasy to His Family & Clan

19. Thrown into a pit to be killed by his
brothers
Sold into slavery by his brothers
Wrongly accused for resisting sin
Forgotten in prison by a man he blessed.
Ruled Egypt & saved his family from the
famine!!

20. YOU MEANT IT FOR EVIL
But God Meant It for Good! (Gen. 50:20)

21. “…FOR MY POWER IS MADE
PERFECT IN WEAKNESS."
2 Cor. 12:9
“For when I am weak,
then I am strong.”( 2 Cor. 12:10)

22. ADVERSITY
=NEW
OPPORTUNITIE
S
“Some of our most
significant opportunities
will be found in times of
greatest difficulty.”

23. HOW DO TOUGH TIMES CHANGE US?
A short List

24. WE SEE GOD BETTER
Adversity helps us see God’s love & power
more clearly.
“If I’d never had a problem, I’d never
know that God could solve them, I’d never
know what faith in God can do.”~~Andre
Crouch (Thru ItAll)

25. WE HEAR GOD CLEARER
“God whispers to us in
our pleasures, speaks
in our conscience, but
shouts in our pains: it is
His megaphone to
rouse a deaf
world.” ( CS Lewis)

26. GOD DRAWS CLOSER
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
(Ps. 34:18)
Is. 41:10: “Do not fear, for I am with you; Do
not anxiously look about you, for I am your
God.I will strengthen you, surely I will help
you. Surely I will uphold you with My
righteous right hand.’

27. DON’T WASTE YOUR SUFFERINGS
Times of suffering are valuable opportunities
to grow more into the person God wants you
to be now & in eternity.
“Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our
outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is
being renewed day by day. For momentary,
light affliction is producing for us an eternal
weight of glory far beyond all
comparison...”2 Cor. 4:16-17