Overcoming Adversity

 We all face adversity at times. Jesus does not sugar coat it in John 16:33. He tells us in this world we will face tribulations. Adversity comes to believers and unbelievers alike. You find that some of the main Bible characters faced adversity. Joseph from Genesis was falsely put in prison after being sold as a slave by his brothers. Moses faced the Egyptian army and Pharaoh. He also faced a hard-hearted Israelite nation who disobeyed God and doubted Him repeatedly. Naomi lost her husband and two sons in a foreign land. Job most certainly faced multiple adversities.  

We should not be surprised when adversities hit our lives. Farmers and truck drivers are facing the adversity of escalating diesel prices. The cost is passed down to the consumers who see ginormous increases in groceries. I know someone recovering from one surgery and yet needing a second one on another body part. I've talked with discouraged people who cannot overcome the constant onslaught of adversities. They barely get through one crisis when another hits full force. A man told me yesterday he had to deplete his bank account to get current on a bill he did not even know he owed. I could see he was frustrated and knowing his past I knew he just wanted relief. 

Overcoming adversity takes getting your mind right. You have to knuckle down and resolve to grit your way through the hard times. I'm not saying there will not be pain. Thoughts of quitting may be entertained. Throughout my life I've found examples of people who overcame adversity and tried to learn from them. Let me give you just three of them. 

It was Jan 2, 1994. The Dallas Cowboys were playing the New York Giants in the last regular season game in New York. The winner of the game would win the NFC East Division title and get a first round bye in the playoffs. It was a tough physical game. In the second quarter, running back Emmitt Smith separated his right shoulder. He finished the game. Each hit, each time he carried the ball shot sharp pain through that shoulder. He didn't just play the rest of the game. His team rallied around him. He ended up with 168 yards rushing and 61 receiving yards. Dallas barely won the game. Commentator legend John Madden said, "It was the gutsiest performance I ever witnessed." Smith's performance moved Madden so deeply he broke his strict rule of not talking to players personally after the game. He went to the Cowboys locker room to congratulate Smith. Resolve of the human spirit can be powerful. It can certainly help overcome adversity.  

The Lord Jesus Christ accepted and endured the cross with joy. Hebrews 12:2 Every lash of the cat of nine tails would make most give up. The twisted crown of thorns jammed into his skull would have made many quit. Add to that the nailing of the feet and hands. Then there was the suffocating as He hung on the cross. To get air a crucified person had to push with nailed feet and pulled with their nailed hands to get a few breaths. It was agonizing adversity. Jesus endured it. He suffered as a Savior, but ultimately defeated sin, death and the grave with His resurrection. Jesus overcame adversity. He can help us do the same. 

Paul faced adversity. Read about them in II Cor 11:24-28. Yet he also wrote "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Phil 4:13 Even in prison he wrote, "Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice." Phil 4:4 He wrote about learning to be content in whatever circumstances he had to face. Phil 4:10-12 Paul knew the resolve and strength he found in Jesus to overcome adversity. That same strength is available to each of us too. God helps us through the rough patches. He gives us endurance to persevere. He gives us faith to not lose heart. Luke 18:1