Bible Study On How to Deal With Difficult Times

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Bible Study On How to Deal With Difficult Times

16 August 2009 No Comment

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What do you do when you encounter difficult times? How do you deal with it? The best way to deal with sadness and a broken heart is to immerse yourself in the bible. When we feel sad or we are dealing with hard circumstances we have the tendency to entertain wrong thoughts. We might feel sorry for ourselves or we may become angry that we are dealing with a particular problem. We may even have doubts that God really loves us. These are all thoughts that could not be further from the truth! When we are sad we are vulnerable to temptation. When we doubt God’s character we are not only sinning, but we are taking away the comfort that we would feel when we have a right view of God’s character. The bible says that we need to renew our minds. We need to fill our minds with the truth, rather than allow ourselves to dwell on wrong thoughts.

Romans 12:12 says, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

There are 5 Ways to Renew Your Mind

1) Read the bible. Just simply open up a bible and read. Or find a bible online. Bible Gateway has a search option where you can enter a word and get a list of verses that match that word. It’s a great way to find verses on a specific topic. If you would like a regular bible reading schedule, check out “Daily Bible Reading Plans”. The New Testament is a great place to start, but the Old Testament can be quite encouraging as well as you read about those who endured difficulty and were strengthened in their faith.

2) Listen to sermons. This can be a tremendous help as you hear what someone stronger in the faith has to say. During difficult times I find myself listening to sermons on CD in my car when I drive. When I do this I find myself uplifted and reminded of biblical truth. Here are a few places to start if you are looking for free bible sermons online to download.

3) Mediate On or Memorize Scripture. To meditate means to dwell on and think deeply about. If you take a verse and think about it’s meaning and relevance to your life, you are meditating. This means taking more than a few seconds. You have to really give yourself time to think through the meaning of the verse. When you memorize scripture you can go back in your mind to the truth of that scripture when you are tempted or feeling sad. Check out this great bible memory software program that is free.

4) Pray through scripture. That means take out a verse and pray and ask God to help you do what the verse is saying. For instance, if you are reading Romans 12:2 then ask God to transform your thinking by reading the bible.

5) Take Every Thought Captive. When you have a wrong thought or you question God’s goodness and love for you, take that thought captive. Don’t allow yourself to dwell on it. Remind yourself of the truth. In order to do this you need to know scripture. Check out a list of bible topics.

Bible study resources

Read the answer to, “I feel abandoned in my trial. Why does God seem so distant when I need Him most?”

Read the study guide, “The Purpose of Trials”

Read “Psalms for the Anxious”

Read “Encouraging Bible Verses”.

Listen to the sermon on “The Purpose of Trials”.

Listen to the sermon on “How to Handle a Broken Heart” (lesson on 4/4/04)

Listen to the sermon on “When Pain is Productive” on 3/30/04.

Bible Study Questions

1. What can you greatly rejoice in, even though you may be suffering right now? And what kind of inheritance does God promise to Christians? Read 1 Peter 1:3-7

2. Why should we consider trials/hardships a joy? Read James 1:2-6

3. What is our present suffering not worthy to be compared with? Read Romans 8:18

4. How did Christ handle suffering? Read 1 Peter 2:21-23

5. The bible says that just before Jesus was arrested He was in the garden of Gethsemane and He was deeply distressed. Even though He was distressed, what was the prayer He prayed to the Father? Read Mark 14:32-36

6. What will revive you during hard times? Read Psalm 119:50

7. Who does God comfort? Read 2 Corinthians 7:6

8. What does Paul say will not happen, even if we are pressed from every part of life?
Read 2 Corinthians 4:8-9

9. When we are downcast who are we to put our hope in? Read Psalm 42:5

10. Who prays for us when we are weak? Read Romans 8:26

Do you have a right relationship with God? Have you put your faith in Jesus Christ? If you haven’t, then read the Path of Salvation and watch this video on the Heart of the Gospel.