The LORD is good, a refuge in times of trouble.  He cares for those who trust in him, but… he will pursue his foes into darkness.  Nahum 1:7-8

When things go wrong, what’s your first thought? God let you down?  You’re under attack?

The “blame game” is an exercise in futility which we all play. My dad used to say that he thought both God and Satan get too much blame for things they’re not directly responsible for.  Many of our difficulties are the result of living in an imperfect, broken world.  You’re the victim of a bad economy. You lost your job because your company was losing money and laid people off. Sometimes, we’re victims of ourselves.  Poor choices, mistakes, even sin create difficulty and pain for which we are responsible. Here are three thoughts that can help you spiritually, mentally, and emotionally in difficult times:

#1:  Get to know God better.  We often suffer because we don’t understand His nature or character.  We fall into the trap of thinking that God’s way is a life of ease. Jesus said, “In this life you will have trouble, but I have overcome the world” (John 6:33).

#2:  Get to know the Word of God. “Your mistake is that you don’t know the Scriptures,” Jesus told the religious people, “And you don’t know the power of God” (Mark 12:24).  Study the lives of great men and women of scripture like David, Elijah, Esther, Deborah. Their lives were marked by difficulty, by pain, and suffering; yet in their difficulty they found that God is sufficient.

#3:  Get to know yourself better. Yes, you’re weak and ineffectual. Good!  Put your confidence in God and discover what amazing things God can do with someone whose strength is found in God.