I've had to repent of this stuff, and had to stay out of agreement with it, because it comes around you so easily. So number one, you've got to deal with the roots; number two, you've got to just embrace challenges differently. We have to embrace the challenges of life differently, because there's going to be someone - God's got someone just who knows how to get up your nose. [Laughter] He has got someone designed to just really push your buttons, and whatever's inside you that's unhealed, broken, wounded, in secrecy, hidden; God's got someone can come along who can just push that button and fire it up. You'll pray all your life for God to remove them, change them, deal to them, call fire from heaven upon them. Nothing of it ever works, have you noticed? You have to change, and you can choose to change, so this is what happens. Normally when we have a problem we feel pain and feel helpless: I don't know what to do. We go back into old ways of thinking: I'm powerless, I can't do anything. Well it's not my fault anyway. Then we begin to blame and excuse ourselves, won't take responsibility, and then we reap what we have sown.
So that's the old way. The old way, something comes up, a problem comes in front of me, I feel negative. I remember those feelings, I go back into the old ways of thinking, powerless, helpless, can't do anything. I agree with all of those thoughts again, now become resentful and whatever, start to blame and excuse myself: I'm powerless. I'm actually going to end up in a mess. There's no way to change your life when you act like that. I've got to handle it different, because the problem comes. Now no use praying God, don't bring any problems into my life. God told me off for praying that way one time. [Laughter] I just want a blessed life! He said: I'm committed to your character, not your comfort. I'll bring a few things into your life. [Laughter] NOT THAT! God knows how to put just enough pain to melt you, that's all, get you to fall apart. He's a refiner of gold, He can make the gold fall apart. When it falls apart, you see the junk that's inside. [Laughter] It does surface when you get melted.
Okay, so number one, when the problems come, try to just identify what you're feeling. Name it. Identify the feelings; feeling helpless, feeling down, feeling angry, feeling resentful, feeling bitter, feeling like withdrawing, feeling this, feeling that. Try to get names on the feelings; now what am I thinking? I'm thinking: I'm powerless. You challenge that assumption. You've got to change that thinking. You've got to change, you've got to break your agreement with that thinking, say: I believe 1 Corinthians 10:13, there's no temptation, no problem that's overtaken me, that's not common to man. God is faithful. God is faithful. God is faithful - He will, with it, make a way of escape. Now I wonder what God's way is through this? I need to enquire: what is the way of behaving I've never seen before? How could I deal with this, in a way I've never done before? God, show me what my options are. There's always options, but sometimes we just don't know. We sometimes need to ask some people to help us, then take action and persist, and you will reap a different future. You'll reap a different future. Seems too simple, doesn't it?
See the problem is, we've lived our life, most of the time, conscious we're alone and powerless, and we don't like it, and we're resentful about it. But if we spend time with God meditating in scriptures like this one here, that the God who created the whole world is with me, He's a powerful God, He's with me and He's helping me, and every time something comes, I can come near to him, and I can begin to face how to handle it - instead of: the first time your emotions come up, you just nut off and do what you've always done. You'll get what you always got. See, we must be responsible to change the way we do things. We are not victims! Whatever God calls us to do, we can do it through Jesus Christ, who empowers us to win in life! No more complaining. No more moaning. No more self pity. No more caves of depression. How many know those ones? People won't admit anything. I've been in those caves of depression for days on end, two little eyes at the back of the cave [laughter] looking out. No one will come in. Who would? Pair of fierce, angry eyes at the end of a cave - who's going to go in there? [Laughter]